


Driven to Distraction

by KryallaOrchid



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: AU - No Ladybug or Chat Noir, Aged Up, F/M, Flirting like adults, Glitter treasure trails, Mature Situations, Mostly a T but there could be one or two scenes that push it, Much apologies, NaNo started, Romance, Sabine is a punk, adult conversations, angry fox noises, angst arc, discontinued, lots of, shenanagins
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-06
Updated: 2018-11-04
Packaged: 2019-07-25 19:36:07
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 39,624
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16204265
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KryallaOrchid/pseuds/KryallaOrchid
Summary: Of all the things Marinette expected to happen today, Adrien Agreste walking into her boutique was not even remotely on the list of possibilities.  Especially because her boutique is called 'Lucky Ladybug's Lingerie'.-DISCONTINUED-





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> AU: Forbidden Love  
> Prompt: Lingerie  
> Word Count: Max 5,000 words - Lies and damnation and I can never keep to that limit.
> 
> Welcome to my new 'mini' series. I joined a writing collab group to take a break and have some fun away from my novels. (Keep watch, there should be a bunch of fics coming out soon) And of course, I got bitten, and HAVE to take this prompt way too far.
> 
> It's a proper AU. No Ladybug and Chat Noir in this. They've also been aged up. There will be more. Please note the rating, k thx
> 
> As usual, I am Australian. There will be slight differences in slang and spelling (and I may have actually mixed up British English and American English, sorry).
> 
> Enjoy!
> 
> WARNING: THIS STORY IS NOW DISCONTINUED UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE. IF YOU START READING, PLEASE GO IN WITH THAT UNDERSTANDING

 

The bell on the door tinkled.

“Morning Chelsea,” Marinette chirped from beneath the front counter where she was reattaching the printer cables to the computer. “Madame Mendeleiev’s appointment is in half an hour and there are croissants my office.” Reaching for her own croissant, she took a bite.

“Salut,” a deep voice that was definitely not Chelsea said. A deep voice that she recognized.

Marinette bashed her head on the bottom of the counter as she tried to stand.

There were really no words that could adequately describe how shocked she was right now. Lady Luck was with her today, all she had to do was act on the fortune she’d been bestowed.  

Yet, there she stood, frozen in shock, a croissant stuffed in her mouth, hair up in a messy bun held together by several pencils, nursing a bashed head and completely stunned as she stared at the man who’d entered her boutique.

“Are you okay?”

Time had been generous. Boyish charm had turned into a carefully crafted and swoon-worthy smile that even Adonis couldn’t produce. Years of training had turned baby fat into slender muscle. A face that seemed to be even kinder than the one she’d fallen for as a teen.

Heir to the Gabriel fashion empire, supermodel and Paris’ most eligible bachelor. Sun-kissed hair, forest eyes, and dazzling smile, Adrien Agreste had somehow chosen to grace her shop.

Her _lingerie_ shop. The Lucky Ladybug’s Lingerie. In big letters outside. So why was he here, of all the places in Paris he could be. Had the bachelor been snatched up and buying a present for his lady love? Or was the Gabriel empire looking to expand?

Did he even remember her?

First things first, get the croissant out of her mouth. Opening her mouth and letting it drop to the floor was not her finest moment. Lady luck was definitely not smiling on her, because, with her mouth hanging open and her bruised brain trying to make her suave when she was really a mess, she tried to talk and the only thing that erupted was a forlorn squeak.

A small frown marred Adrien’s perfect features. “Do you need to sit down? That was a hard knock.”

“Oh, I get knocked up all at the time,” she replied, then her eyes flew wide. “I mean— you can knock me— I knock my head all the time!” She covered her eyes with a hand. “Wow. Just wow.”

Adrien burst into laughter. “You haven’t changed.”

He remembered her. Even after all these years, he remembered her.

They’d been in the same friendship circle at Françoise Dupont, Nino and Adrien had been inseparable, and Marinette and Alya had been the same. When Nino and Alya had fallen into a relationship, the four of them had hung out together and Marinette’s cute teenage crush had become full-blown puppy love.

She and Adrien had only had one year of school together at Collège Françoise Dupont  before they moved from collège to lycée and he and Chloe Bourgeois had gone to a more prestigious and ‘appropriate for the mayor’s daughter’ school while Marinette had gone on with Alya and Nino to lycée and had lost touch with him.

Seems they came full circle though. That same unbridled and laughter she’d heard when they were teens, standing in the rain and he’d offered her his umbrella. Laughter that was as infectious as it was gorgeous and Marinette felt herself giggling along with him, and that same stupid goddang crush welled up inside her and bubbled over.

She was fourteen again, instead of twenty-five. Fourteen and in pigtails and stuck on the thought that she knew everything there was to know about being in love when she really had no clue. She was older, now. Wiser. A professional career woman, owning her own boutique, designing her own merchandise, even hiring her own staff. She could do this. She could _act_ instead of hiding it.

“It’s good to see you, Adrien,” Marinette said. “You look fantastic.”

“I think that’s my line,” he said, sauntering up to the counter. “You look _amazing_.”

Marinette suppressed a shiver in both the purr and the appreciative look he gave her as his eyes drifted across her and ended up on her hair. “Although, I think I miss the pigtails,” he remarked.

“Well, that makes one of us,” Marinette replied. Nudging the fallen croissant with her foot to hide it, she placed one hand on the counter. “What brings the great Adrien Agreste to my humble boutique?”

He smiled and averted his eyes at her proclamation of ‘great’. Nodding at the display mannequins, he said “You know, I never picked you for a lingerie designer. There’s some really nice stuff here. Are all of them your own designs?”

Marinette tilted her head. “Did you come here to check out my goods?”

The tips of Adrien’s ears went red, but his smile grew wider and he leaned against the counter. “Well, that all depends on what you’re willing to show me.”

A blush tried to creep up Marinette’s neck. She hadn’t expected him to turn on the charm and reciprocate, but she absolutely didn’t want to stop it. “I’m sure I can find something in your size. Are you a fan of polka dots?” Who was this sultry vixen with the honey-coated tongue and how could Marinette get her to stay?

“Immensely,” he drawled. Blinking, he straightened and lost the smile. “But not on me,” he blurted hastily.  

“Shame,” Marinette chirped. “You would look good in polka dots.” A thought occurred to her. Even though the media proclaimed Adrien was single, that didn’t mean he actually was. Maybe she shouldn’t have gone to full-flirt-make-up-for-lost-time mode. Scratching at an imaginary dirt spot on the counter, she looked at him through her eyelashes. “Or are you here to buy something special for a special someone?”

He twittered nervously. “No. No special someone’s. My father would never allow that.”

“Really?” she blurted. “Wow.”

“Yeah, I know. Pretty stupid, huh?” Adrien rolled his eyes. “He’s convinced that me dating would be bad for company stock, so I’m under contract to wait until I’m thirty.”

Her mouth dropped open in shock. “You’re shitting me.”

Adrien lifted a shoulder in a shrug. “It’s not really been an issue.”

“That’s _years_ away,” she replied, astounded by that. “He can’t expect you to blue-ball until then.”

Adrien laughed. “One night stands _are_ a thing, you know. Just no second nights. As long as Father doesn’t find out, I’m golden.”

“So, no one’s tickled your fancy enough to make it last _more_ than one night?”

“That sounds like a jab at my stamina.” Though he eyed her, his smile and tone were teasing.

Marinette copied his one-shouldered shrug. “I’m just asking.”

He laughed. “I should’ve known the lingerie designer would leap straight into questions about sex.”

She scoffed. “Lingerie isn’t about sex, Adrien.” Placing both her palms flat against the counter, she leaned towards him, using elbows to push her breasts together. “It’s about power.”

The move produced the desired effect as Adrien dropped his gaze. “I see.”

“Clothes are an integral part of personal identity. Comfort, confidence, strength, power, all these can be found in clothes. A man in a business suit portrays a sense of pride and privilege. It’s the same with undergarments. If a woman finds the lingerie that she loves and makes her feel good, it’s a secret confidence, worn beneath a professional appearance which will bolster her. Women come in all shapes and sizes and all of them deserve to be able to slip into something that makes them feel good. When women feel good about themselves, men find that sexy.”

“We do.”

Oh, the purr in his voice made her knees weak and her thighs tingle. As tempting as it was to continue to flirt with him—especially with the way he was responding to her and flirting back— he was apparently unattainable and she was working.

She cleared her throat and brought his focus back to her face. “So, why are you here? I’m fairly certain you didn’t come for a lesson on women’s sexuality.”

The suaveness was lost as Adrien gripped the back of his neck with one hand and turned uncertain. “I… um… okay, this will sound bad, but I’m trying to find Nino. We lost contact after lycee when he left for America, and you’re Alya’s best friend, so I figured you’d be able to tell me. He’s due to come back to Paris soon, right?”

Ahh. A disappointment, but understandable. “As much as I’d like to help, I don’t give out Nino’s contact details,” Marinette said, regretful and hoping Adrien would understand. “But if you give me yours, I can pass on a message.”

Adrien nodded and reached for his phone. “He’s a pretty big shot now, I hear.”

Understatement of the year. Nino was huge in the music industry now. He’d done incredibly well for himself. Marinette was so proud of him. “Massive.”

“I can’t wheedle it out of you?” he asked in a cute tone and battered his eyelashes at her.

Fourteen-year-old Marinette would’ve been in a dead faint by now, but twenty-five-year-old Marinette wanted to take him into the back room and see how well he could wheedle. Playing it cool instead, she reached for her phone and scrolled through until she found what she was looking for. Playing the message on speaker, she smiled at Adrien.

_“I don’t care who it is. If the King of France asks for my number, Marinette, you have my permission to tell him to eff off.”_

_“Nino, love, there is no King of France.”_

_“I rest my case. Nino out.”_

“So,” Marinette said and shut off her phone. “Eff off, your majesty.”

Adrien burst into rambunctious laughter. “He hasn’t changed either.”

“My hands are tied,” she replied with a shrug. “As I said, I can pass on your number.”

Scrolling through his phone, he glanced up at her and waggled an eyebrow. “And keep it for yourself too, I hope.”

It took tremendous effort to remain calm. “I was already planning on sending cat memes at two in the morning.”

He laughed. “Excellent. I fell out of touch with a lot of people from college. I’d love a chance to catch up. May I take you out for coffee?”

And her heart cartwheeled away. “Is that before or after I give Nino your number?”

He handed her his phone, open in his contacts with his number on display. “Regardless of whether you pass on my number, I’d like to see you again.”

“Coffee is a little hard,” she replied. She added his number to her phone and firing off a quick message so that he had her number. “I don’t have a lot of free time during the day.”

“Dinner then,” Adrien responded immediately and Marinette’s spirits were uplifted by how eager he sounded for that. Accepting his phone back, he rushed, “Tomorrow night. I’ll text you the details.”

“It’s a date,” Marinette said and dared wink at him.

The nervous twitter came back. “Ahh—”

“A friendship dinner,” she amended, her voice rising in question. “To catch up on old times.”

Instead of shaking her hand, he took her fingers and turned them, then lifted her hand to his mouth so he could brush his lips against her knuckles. “Tomorrow,” Adrien replied with a decisive and not-as-confident-as-he-wanted nod.

And with that, he strode toward the door, not quite a run, but certainly not the swagger he’d had when he walked in.

As the bell tolled to show the door had closed, Marinette slumped against the counter and fanned herself. Fumbling for her phone, she hit Alya’s number, desperate to talk to her best friend. “Girl, you are not going to believe who just waltzed into my store.”

 

* * *

 

 **_Adrien:_ ** I really enjoyed last night. It was good catching up and trading stories. Would love to do it again.

 **_Marinette:_ ** You keep taking me to fancy places like that, you can have me every night.

 **_Marinette:_ ** *Feed me. Not have me.

 **_Adrien:_ ** So, the way to a girl’s heart is through her stomach?

 **_Marinette:_ ** Technically, the way to my heart is past my breasts but that might be little too forward.

**_Adrien:_ **

**__ **

**_Marinette:_ **  *winky face*

 **_Adrien_ ** **:** This flirty side of you is unexpected.

 **_Adrien:_ ** and greatly appreciated.

 **_Adrien:_ ** Would it be too forward to ask you for a second date?

 **_Adrien:_ ** Just as friends, of course.

 **_Marinette:_ ** Would it be too forward if I said I was going to wear this on our second ‘just friends’ date?

**Adrien** **_:_ **.exe has stopped working.

 **_Marinette:_ ** LOL

 **_Adrien:_ ** Are you serious?

 **_Marinette:_ ** Might be. You’ll have to wait and see.

 **_Adrien:_ ** Tonight. Seven. I’ll make reservations.

 **_Marinette:_ ** Watch out, Monsieur Agreste. Your father might mistake your eagerness for friendship as something more and you’ll be in breach of contract.

 **_Adrien:_ ** I’ll show him the lingerie picture you seduced me with. I am innocent in all this.

 **_Marinette:_ ** One picture and you’re seduced? I am astonished by your lack of restraint.

 **_Adrien:_ ** But not appalled. Gotta go. I’ll text you the reservation details.

* * *

 

Marinette hadn’t meant to keep flirting with Adrien. Not at dinner. Not over text. But the honeyed words just kept flowing and Adrien’s encouragement and reciprocation were more than enough to assure her that her attention was welcome.

It hadn’t all been flirty chatter, although most sentences had been laced with it. They’d talked about so many things. It was so much easier to talk to him now. No nerves, no stammering or mixing up her sentences. It was surprising how much they’d had in common too. A love for anime cosplay for example. A passion for the cliché sunset walks. Followed the same Youtubers. Enjoyed the same genre of movies.

They talked about her business and his modeling. They talked about Nino and Alya and the possibility of wedding bells in the pair’s future. They talked about the other friends they’d made in school. They discovered a shared and deep love of puns and spent a good twenty minutes punning as much as they could.

By the end of the night, her cheeks hurt from smiling so much, her side hurt from the laughter they’d shared, and she was fairly sure it wouldn’t take much to fall in love with him properly this time.  

While the flirty, horny side of her was deep in desire and denial, the more rational and mature side warily pondered that it was possible he only wanted one thing from her, that maybe he had changed that much and saw her as a conquest. There were others in their class who had gone playboy in their later years, breaking a string of hearts. It wasn’t a stretch to think he might have too.

She didn’t want to be one amongst many in an apparently long list of one night stands. She wanted to be special, to feel special. She wanted romance and love and long-term. She could see that with Adrien and if she ruined it now with a one night only, she mightn’t get another chance.

Right now, it was all words. No touches, no caresses and certainly no kisses beyond that one on the back of her hand. Words didn’t have to mean anything as long as it stayed words.

With Adrien, Marinette chose to believe the words could matter, because, through the flirting and the smiles, there was also genuine laughter. True joy and companionship and a rekindled friendship. A connection she couldn’t explain. They were testing the waters to see which way they fell.

She could flirt and tease and see if there was anything in his feelings that they could build from. See just how rigidly he followed his father’s contract. She wouldn’t coerce him into breaking it, but she wouldn’t sit idly on her intentions either.

If she had to wait until he was thirty before anything truly began, so be it, but he would know she was waiting this time. She wouldn’t let the opportunity slip through her fingers.

So she wore the bra and pantie set to their second dinner.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A dinner date and a conversation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, as most of this is already written, I can sneak you another chapter now. Enjoy!

Soft candlelight, a cozy corner, a nice meal, and a string quartet were all the ingredients required for a romantic evening. They’d been talking and laughing through the entire meal, sharing tidbits from the lives and enjoying each other’s company.

“So,” Adrien said as he refilled their wine glasses after they’d eaten their fill. “Why haven’t you applied to any of the large fashion companies? What made you give up on that dream?”

“Who said I gave up on my dreams?” Marinette asked, astounded. “I  _ own _ Lucky Ladybug’s, Adrien. All of the clothes there are my designs, or purchased with my approval.”

He almost spilled the wine in surprise. “You  _ own _ it?”

Marinette laughed lightly. “Yes.”

“How?” he asked, passing her glass to her.

Accepting it, she took a sip before she explained. “My parents own and operate one of the best bakeries in Paris, in the middle of one of the most prestigious areas. They live in the same jurisdiction as the Mayor. Your father continues to live there. Are you really that new to money?”

“New money? Me?” He raked a hand through his hair. “Never been accused of that before.”

Marinette shook her head. “It’s not an accusation. It’s just… you assumed, based on my choices, that you were the only one who had it. My grandmother’s grandfather built his empire and handed it down, with the understanding that each generation would take what they need to be happy and add back into it for the next. When I graduated, from Ecole De La Chambre Syndicale mind you, Nonna’s present was to front me the start-up costs for Lucky Ladybug’s, since we’d been talking about it and planning it for years. I’d already been selling my designs online for years and everything grew from there.”

“You didn’t want the glitz and glamour of a job at Gabriel? Or any of the other fashion houses?”

“Glitz and glamour might make someone like Chloe happy, but I never wanted to be global,” she said with a small shrug. “I have simple needs. I wanted to keep control over my own designs and do things the way I wanted to and I have that. I  _ love _ what I do and I’m very lucky my family was able to provide me with the opportunity.”

He nodded. “Lucky Ladybug indeed.”

She giggled. “Guess you didn’t do your research before you came knocking at my door.”

With a sheepish smile, he said, “No. Not so much. I was more after Nino’s number.”

“Did he call?” she asked, curious. Nino had been delighted to hear Adrien was looking for him but that didn’t mean he’d had time to call.

“He did, thanks to you. Blasted my eardrums about losing his number, without any consideration to the fact that he lost mine too, and we arranged to meet up when they’re in Paris next week.”

She beamed at him. “Excellent. We’ll probably be at a few events together then. There’ll be more than a few parties that Nino will throw while he’s in Paris.”

He looked excited by that prospect. “I’ll definitely keep that in mind.”

She hid her smile behind her wine glass. “What about you?” she asked, directing the conversation back to what they were previously discussing. “Are you following your dreams?”

He pulled a face and shrugged. “I mean, I enjoy what I do, but I always thought I’d do more. Make an impact somehow. Make my own choices and decisions and… well. I’m still a model.”

“That’s not a bad thing, Adrien,” she replied and let her eyes skip over him. “You are gorgeous.”

While he smirked at her, the redness at the tips of his ears told a different story. “Well, thank you, but alas, my good looks pale in comparison to yours.”

His words warmed her through. “Don’t you enjoy being a model?”

“I don’t enjoy the attention it gets. It’s hard to tell when someone is being genuine.”

She nodded and hoped that didn’t apply to her. “I imagine being the heir to such an empire would have its drawbacks.”

Adrien nodded. “I enjoyed business school, but despite what my father wants, I don’t see myself taking over the company.”

“What do you see yourself doing?”

“Travelling,” Adrien said cautiously, as though he was voicing it for the first time. “I do a travel blog whenever I go away for shoots, it’s a lot of fun. I can see myself doing that.”

Impressed, Marinette nodded. “That would be an interesting job. You and Alya should talk.”

“Alya seems to be more into hard-hitting investigative reports, while I prefer leisure and gossip.” He sat forward, deflecting the conversation away from himself. “Speaking of gossip, you must have some juicy tidbits. Caught anyone in a compromising position in the change rooms?”

Marinette laughed at his eagerness. “There’s a sign that says ‘One per stall’ for a reason.”

Adrien grinned. “Sounds like a story. Do share. Promise it won’t end up on my blog.”

Taking a sip of her wine, she said, “Do you remember Mylène and Ivan?”

“From…” Memory dawned on him and he sat up straight to stare at her. “Noooo. Really? They were always such private people. You caught them? How?”

“Mylène got tangled in the curtain. Made for quite an awkward moment, but she was lucky it was only me in the shop at the time.”

Adrien snickered.

“She wasn’t the first and she definitely won’t be the last,” Marinette said. “The girls and I sometimes have bets on which partners are more likely to accompany the woman into the change room to ‘sample’.”

“Have you ever snuck off to the change rooms?”

She laughed. “And who would I sneak off with? I’m  _ working _ . I’ve never had the incentive to risk my business.” She peeked at him through her eyelashes. “I suppose that could change. He would have to be an  _ exceptional  _ specimen though.”

Adrien grinned at her. 

Marinette took another sip, then carefully placed her wine glass back in the table. Threading her fingers together, she rested her chin on them and her elbows on the table. “What about you? Any antics backstage?”

“Not backstage. We’re usually rushed off our feet before the walk. The antics come at the after parties.”

“When no one’s looking.”

“Mostly girls flaunting or guys trying to be impressive. Prank wars and strut-offs. People slipping off together.” He sat back and averted his gaze. “It’s not happened to me.”

“Shame,” she said.

“Not really.” He studied her and seemed to decide something. “You’re not like other girls I’ve had dinner with.”

Marinette lifted her attention away from her wine. “Cliché much?”

Adrien laughed and patted the air with his hand. “Okay. Okay. But hear me out.”

Clasping her hands, she smiled at him. “I’m listening.”

He sat back on his chair, resting both his hands palm down on the bare table ahead of him. “I’ve gotten texts like that before. Granted, it’s normally the girl flaunting the lingerie and not a mannequin. They flirt and tease, trying to get themselves into my bed. It doesn’t work,” he added hastily. “And sometimes I’m forced to interact with them on a professional level after.”

“Other models?”

He nodded in agreement and continued cautiously. “Or designers thinking that they have a way to my father through me.”

“I see,” she said and a frown marred her smile. “I hope you don’t think that about me.”

“They’re very over the top. Lots of touching and, like… ‘totally accidental’ slippage to show me what their wearing and invite me to see more.”

Dropping her eyes to the table, she poked her dessert spoon with her finger. “Does it make you uncomfortable?”

He didn’t answer that. “You haven’t done any of that. We’re sitting here, having a good time and not once have you tried to bring any of my attention to your undergarments. I’m not even sure you’re wearing the ones you sent me a picture of.”

Marinette lifted an eyebrow at him. “Do you  _ want _ me to act like that?”

“Are you wearing it?” he pressed.

She picked up her wine glass and swirled the wine, not surprised by the question at all. Their evening was drawing to a close and he’d been sneaking appreciative glances all night, trying to spot whether or not she’d been true to her word. “Curiosity killed the cat, Monsieur Agreste.”

“Satisfaction brought it back, Mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng.”

“According to you,” she said, lifting her chin and holding his gaze. “You only get one night. Are you certain you want to waste your one night on this set, when I have an entire boutique to work my way through?”

Adrien’s eyes widened at the implications of that.

Placing the wine glass back on the table, she curled her fingers around the stem and gently twisted it from side to side. Looking at Adrien through her eyelashes, she studied him and voiced her question. “Are you up for that sort of commitment?”

Adrien’s face fell. “I… I can’t commit to anything,” he said and sounded completely regretful. “My father…” He dipped into silence, staring at a spot on the table.

They were at a tipping point. Her intentions laid out before him, ready for his judgment, he just had to decide what he wanted.

“Or was your plan contained to just a one night stand?” she asked, adding a little heat to her voice.

“No,” he assured the table. “It wasn’t.”

While Marinette was certain the table felt his deep, intense sincerity, she didn’t. “So what are your intentions, Adrien?”

He swallowed. “Marinette… I…”

Her heart felt heavy. “Perhaps I misread the situation.”

“I was upfront when I said I wouldn’t date,” Adrien said.

Marinette narrowed her eyes, not appreciating his tart tone. “Which is why I’m asking now. I have no intention of stringing either of us along. Nor do I have any wish to participate in a one night stand. I’m not going to splutter my way through a movie invitation only for you to invite Nino as well; I’m going to be very clear. I see potential in us and I would be more than happy to invest time in that. However, I would prefer to know whether or not my intentions are welcomed. Or if you’d rather we remain friends. In which case the flirting on both sides would have to stop.”

More heavy silence from him and she didn’t understand why. For her, it was a simple yes or no question. She prompted, “Adrien?”

Adrien shook his head. “I can’t. My father… the contract—”

“Wouldn’t. Not couldn’t.”

Adrien flicked his gaze to her, started. “What?”

“You said you wouldn’t date. Not couldn’t. I understand there’s a contract and I would’ve been willing to discuss that with you and come to some sort of agreement, but you said  _ wouldn’t _ . Which means you’re perfectly happy with the contract so now I’m wondering if it’s a crutch for you.” 

He couldn’t meet her eyes. 

Plucking her napkin from her lap, she placed it over her plate. “I should go,” she said and reached for her purse to extract her share of the cost. “Thanks for a lovely dinner.”

A large part of her hoped he would say something. Stop her. Call out. Admit something. Explain more about this contract which seemed to somehow be important to him. When she made it to the door without a peep out of him, she realized she’d seriously misjudged the entire situation.

In that case, better she get out now, than get invested and have her heart broken.

With a sigh, she walked out into the cool winter night and wrapped her shawl around her shoulders. “Welp,” she muttered to herself, looking upward at the cloudy sky. “I think I fucked that one up.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alya dances like A Single Lady.

The alcohol burned down her throat and Marinette coughed before she could draw breath.

Alya thumped her shot glass down on the table before them and whooped. “That’s the stuff!”

“This was an excellent idea,” Marinette said, leaning closer to her friend so she could shout her words over the top of Nino’s excellent DJing. Crop tops, jeans, and boots (perfect for stomping on toes of the more handsy), the girls were dressed for a night of dancing. The club was one of Marinette’s favorite places to dance. Huge dance floor, surrounded by stools and tables with a balcony area above for the more VIP patrons, like Alya.

“Gurl, I told you. Tonight’s for us! Friends, fun and, fucking.”

Marinette giggle-snorted. “That’s for you and Nino later.”

With a wink, Alya said, “You got me. But I told you I’m wing-manning tonight, so it could be you too. You never know.”

Marinette pulled a face. “Alya—”

“Will be,” Alya said, correcting herself with a harried hand wave. “Not could. If I have to clobber a guy over the head, I’m gonna get you laid.”

Marinette scoffed at her friend’s joke. “If you’re that desperate, let me borrow Nino.”

“Nino would blow your mind, gurl, then I’d never get you back. So!” Alya purred and leaned in closer. “What’s your poison tonight? Tall, dark and handsome? Red-headed lover boy? I’m sure there are plenty of guys here tonight ready and willing to worship the ground that you walk on, just say the word!”

“Blond, green-eyed model,” Marinette replied.         

“Gotya,” Alya replied and gave Marinette double finger guns. “Copycat it is.”

“No,” Marinette laughed and caught Alya’s chin, turning her best friend’s face toward the mixing board where Nino was currently working. “Adrien’s here.”

Alya huffed and folded her arms on her chest as she looked down over the balcony. “I still think you should’ve boned him. All that pent-up sexual energy you’ve stored over the years, he wouldn’t have been able to resist.”

“When have I _ever_ been interested in a one night stand?” Marinette replied with a roll of her eyes.

“You should try it! You might like it.”

“Sure, sure.”

Down on the dance floor, Nino lifted one hand away from his sound mixing so that he could greet Adrien with a high-five before he was right back using both hands and bopping away to the music.

Adrien stood awkwardly at Nino’s side, uncertain. Marinette knew that pounding music made it difficult to talk, but she also knew that if Adrien would pay attention, he’d see Nino gesturing at the noise-canceling headset which allowed them to talk to each other. Instead, Adrien seemed to be searching the crowd of people and a fleeting and somewhat egotistical part of Marinette wondered if he was looking for her.

As Adrien’s eyes drifted toward the balcony where she and Alya sat, Marinette turned her head away before he could see her. He had every right to be there, just as she had every right not to want to see him. When Marinette dared to flick a subtle glance back down, Adrien was fiddling with the headset that Nino had thrust at him.

“We shouldn’t worry about him,” Alya said, noticing Marinette’s attention. “We should just have fun.”

“I just… I had high hopes, that’s all.”

“You spent so long pining for him when we were young,” Alya said, nodding sagely as she tried to pretend she wasn’t as tipsy as she was. “It’s understandable that you had high hopes. But, c’mon”-Alya smacked Marinette’s knee-“Reality never lives up to fantasy. Let it go.”

“ _Let it goooo_ ,” Marinette echoed, a grin on her face as she threw her arm around Alya’s shoulder.

“ _Can’t hold it back anymore_!” the two of them sang in chorus before they descended into giggles.

The beat changed and Alya grew excited. Tapping Marinette’s arm, she blurted, “Bae, it’s our song!” The tapping became a tugging as Alya bounced to her feet. “C’mon. We gotta dance.”

Giggling, Marinette let Alya drag her down the stairs and through the crush of people to reach the dance floor.

Nino’s beats for the night were fantastic. Heart pounding and reverberating enough that Marinette could feel it pulsing through her body, inviting her to move and lose herself in the rhythm. Flowing hips and arms raised, she sashayed and shimmied, dipped and swayed and revolved around Alya.

She wasn’t interested in the other men who came grinding her way. A steepled hand against their chest and a push were enough to deter most, and those that didn’t obey the hand found it could easily turn into a fist from Alya, or one of the bouncers on call.

Watching Alya flirt with Nino was a highlight. The little waves and smiles, the blown kisses and the held eye contact as Alya danced like A Single Lady.

But every time Marinette glanced Nino’s way to check his reaction to Alya’s antics, her eyes were automatically drawn to Adrien. He was almost always watching her with this indecipherable gaze, averting his eyes the moment he realized he’d been caught.

Marinette didn’t understand, nor did she want to understand why there was an intensity in his gaze. She’d not had a single text from him since their dinner, not a hint that he might be reconsidering.

If he wanted to grow a pair and come dance, that was entirely up to him. There were plenty of girls perfectly willing to accommodate that ‘one-night’ clause of his, she could even see some dancing provocatively as they tried to entice gazes.

Every now and then, Nino’s voice would echo over the top as the music dimmed, announcing the next set, reminding people that requests were available and thanking people for coming. Adrien didn’t leave his side.

When thirst overcame the girls, they retreated up to the balcony to rest and chat. When the need to move seduced them back to the dance floor, they followed the beat Nino gave them and cavorted.

As Nino’s set drew to an end, close to midnight, Marinette excused herself to head to the bathroom. She came back to aggressive Alya and Nino make outs at their table and Adrien nursing an empty glass and desperately trying to melt into the floor to hide.

With a roll of her eyes, Marinette tugged Nino’s elbow to stop his hand from further creeping up Alya’s skirt. “Get a room.” She shouldered her way past them, trying to get them to unhook from each other. While Alya’s disengaged her mouth, Nino simply attached his to Alya’s neck.

“I think I may have teased him too much,” Alya said, making no effort to stop him and even going to the trouble of tilting her head to expose more tender neck flesh.

“So take it home,” Marinette replied, flopping down on a seat beside her. “No one wants to see that.”

“Salut Marinette,” Adrien said as he vied for her attention.

She cast him a look and nodded in greeting. “Salut Adrien. Alya! C’mon! Calm your tits.”

“But… he’s _really_ good at this.”

Another roll of her eyes and Marinette gave Alya a shove. “Taxi. Home. Bed. You can do all the neck kisses you like then.”

“But what about you?” Alya asked, even though Nino seemed to be ready to pick Alya up and cart her off to follow those instructions.

“I’m not after neck kisses,” Marinette replied, turning her head to get some semblance of backup from Adrien. “We’ll be fine, won’t we, Adrien?”

Why was Adrien giving her sad puppy eyes?

“You heard the lady,” Nino said, plucking Alya off the chair and wrapping her legs around his hips. He untangled enough to offer Adrien a fist bump. “Catchya later, bro. Remember what I said,” he said and then leaned over to Marinette to leave a smacking kiss on her cheek. “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do, babe.”

“You’d do everything,” Marinette replied, laughing at the pair.

“Well, then. Better get started,” Alya teased as she clutched Nino’s neck and let him cart her away.

Then they were gone, and Marinette was left on her own. With Adrien. She looked across the table at him and held his gaze with as impassive expression she could manage. “I should go too. I need to take inventory tomorrow. You know. Count the bras and panties on the floor.”

Adrien’s eyes widened until they resembled dinner plates.

Gathering up her purse, she stood. “Nice to see you, Adrien.”

He touched her elbow before she could get too far. “Can we talk?” He swallowed and looked around. “Not here. Somewhere quieter. There’s a cafe about five minutes’ walk that is quiet and—”

Marinette tilted her head. “You can walk me to the metro station if you like.”

“That’s not far, I really would like to—”

“I have to work tomorrow,” she reminded him. “There’s a train in ten minutes I really should be on.”

“I can drive you home,” he insisted. “My car isn’t far. It’s quiet and warmer than a train.”

She studied him, wondering at this sudden eagerness. “Are you fit to drive?”

“I’ve had two all night. Please. I just want to talk.”

“Alright.”

She walked behind him, using his bulk as a shield as they pushed their way through the crowd of people to the coat check.

“I recognize this one,” Adrien said as he took Marinette’s coat. He held it out to her by the shoulders, a silent request to help her into it. “Chanel’s winter collection, am I right?”

Marinette laughed as she accepted his help and slipped her arm into the sleeve. “No. It’s a Hell Bunny coat.”

After lifting the coat onto her back, he rested his hands on her shoulders. “I’ve… never heard of them.”

“They’re from the UK,” she replied as she buttoned up the front. “Not a large fashion boutique, quite niche, but I love their stuff.”

“It suits you,” he replied, and Marinette pretended she didn’t notice how his hands lingered around her collar under the pretense of smoothing it down over her shoulders.

“It’s the pink,” Marinette replied and stepped away. “I always did love the color.”

“Should I be concerned that you don’t wear Gabriel?” he asked.

“Gabriel isn’t very practical for winter coats,” Marinette replied. “Lack of pockets.”

Adrien laughed. “I’ll remember that next time my father asks what I think about a design.” After pulling on his own jacket, he held the door open for her. “My lady.”

The rhythmic thumping of the music lessened to a dull beat as the door closed behind them. Smiling at her, he bowed slightly and held out his hand to gesture in the direction of his car. “This way.”

She fell into step beside him, enjoying the peace of the night.

“Peace at last,” Adrien said, breathing a sigh of relief and seemingly of the same mind as her.

A car whooshed past them, sending icy wind to buffet them and Marinette curled in on herself to try and keep warm. “I wonder if it will snow tonight.”

“Perfect season for warm fires and hot cocoa,” Adrien said. “I love winter.”

“Spring is my favorite time,” Marinette replied. “Flowers blooming, new life, the promise of warmth with a lingering cold. Snuggle weather without it being overwhelming.”

“That’s a very romantic way of viewing spring.”

“I’m a romantic at heart,” Marinette said and slipped her hands into the pockets of her coat to keep them warm. “Alya’s back in Paris, just in time for snow and Christmas. That’s so like her.”

“Do you have a lot of plans with her?”

Marinette nodded. “I always have plans when Alya’s in town. We’re going shopping tomorrow for a girls night she has planned on Sunday. With Mylène, Rose, and Juleka. Do you remember them?”

“Absolutely,” he said with a decisive nod. “You five were a great team.”

“What about you and Nino? Make a bunch of plans too?”

“Yeah, we did.” He laughed. “Coincidently tomorrow night too.”

She giggled. “Of course.”

“We’ve got a lot to catch up on. Been a while and I’m really kicking myself that I lost his number. What a waste of all those years.”

“Ahh, you and Nino will be back to bestest buds in no time,” Marinette said. “And it will be just like old times.”

Adrien looked at her. “I hope not.”

Good, he wasn’t going to dance around the conversation like she thought he might. Regarding him, she asked, “What do you hope?”

“I… um…” he swallowed heavily. “Did you mean it?”

Marinette nodded. “Yes,” she said, making her tone light and teasing. “I do have an entire boutique’s worth of lingerie to go through, if you’re willing.”

Adrien laughed and relaxed his shoulders.

Marinette smiled, then let it fade. “I don’t like lies. I’d rather be open and honest with people. I meant what I said. I can see potential and I don’t want to be just a one night stand.” She sighed and conceded, “But I probably shouldn’t have ultimatum’ed it. That part was a mistake. I’m sorry.”

“I wasn’t doing you any favors by sulking because you’d caught me,” he said. “That was an eye-opener for sure. You know exactly what you want, don’t you.”

“I do. Do you?”

Clenching his hands into a fist, Adrien nodded. “Okay. Just hear me out.”

“That’s why I’m here.”

“When I was twenty-one, I fell in love.” He sighed, disheartened. “As you do, I guess.”

Marinette nodded sagely. “It’s surprising how often that happens.”

Sparing her a glance, he said, “She was a budding designer and she was everything I thought I wanted. She was cute. Sweet. Kind. I defied my father and declared I was ending the contract to formally date her and… well, he kicked me out.”

Marinette’s eyes widened. “Oh. Wow. I honestly didn’t think he would’ve. He always seems so proud of you in the interviews.”

“You don’t know him,” Adrien muttered. “Not like I do.”

“I’m so sorry. I didn’t know.”

Adrien shrugged and spared her a smile. “Thanks, but it was okay. I had savings, I had money, I wasn’t destitute, my father couldn’t take what I earned myself. I had a decent income. But, I mean, living at home was all I’d ever known, so I turned to her, expecting that because she said she loved me, she’d understand and be supportive while I got back on my feet.”

His voice got quiet and sad. “Because I no longer had the money to wine and dine her like she expected, because my father’s empire was cut off, she didn’t want to have anything to do with me. It’d been a ploy and since I didn’t have what she wanted, she dumped me faster than you could snap your fingers. I found out later she’d won a job at Gabriel. So… she got what she wanted.”

“Bitch.”

Adrien’s puff of breath was humorless. “I was too proud to go home. My father had warned me that there would be a lot of young women out there who saw me as a cash cow, and that’s what the contract was designed to prevent and I didn’t listen. Thought I knew better. Then the modeling work died up. Partial degree, no job and, well, I’m too well known. People didn’t believe I was willing to work in a coffee shop or a store... I was Gabriel’s boy, no one wanted to risk it in hiring me, so…” he shrugged. “There wasn’t a lot I could do. Next time, he said he wouldn’t take me back.”

“That’s awful. I’m so sorry.”

Adrien sighed and rolled his shoulders, thrusting his hands into his pockets. “It’s not so bad, really. I’m living on my own. I have my degree now, so even if I stop modeling, I still have options, career-wise. The contract… well, it’s a technicality. Most of the time, girls say they’re fine with a one night stand, and therefore reveal their true intentions to me, or they just accept it and never speak to me again. You’re the first to suggest anything different.”

“I see.”

“You’re… different. Different than what I remember as a teen. There’s a confidence that I find really attractive. And the fact that you treated me exactly the same _after_ I mentioned the contract mattered to me. I’m not worried about that part of things.”

Marinette nodded. “Just the opening yourself up to be hurt again part.”

“Yeah. You were right, it _is_ a crutch. But I have very good and well thought out reasons why I chose to continue the contract. And I’m sorry if it seems harsh, but I don’t want to repeat past mistakes.”

Marinette was disappointed, but she understood. Adrien had been hurt, all he was trying to do was protect himself. She knew that better than anyone. “I see. Thank you for trusting me with that and I’m sorry you were hurt.”

In a soft voice, he admitted, “It’s hard to trust.”

She nodded, keeping her voice as soft as his. “I get that.”

“You’re not her.”

“No. I’m not.”

“I don’t think you have anything in common. But… I need some time to convince myself of that.”

She tilted her head at him. “Meaning?”

“I like you. You’re fun to be around and…” He laughed and clutched the back of his neck. “You completely took my breath away while dancing. I was so jealous of all the other men who were around you and… you’re gorgeous and amazing and I want to learn more before we put a label on anything.”

Marinette felt her expression darken. “Then the only ‘label’ you’re going to get is friend.”

Adrien looked taken aback for a moment. “I’m trying to be honest.”

“I’m glad for that honesty, I really am,” she said and hunched her shoulders. “You’re not the only one who was hurt in the past, Adrien. Everyone has their demons they need to fight. Stop thinking you’re alone in this.” She sighed. “I dated in university. Had myself someone I thought I could spend the rest of my life with. He was cute and funny, and pretty popular. Always surrounded by friends and I was drawn to that.”

“What happened?” he asked softly.

“We were together for a year. He went as far as meeting my parents. I thought we were exclusive right up until I found him in bed with someone else. He laughed at how upset I got and told me that we weren’t even dating, that he considered me a friend with benefits, and I was stupid for putting a label on something.” She straightened from her hunch and looked at Adrien. “So that’s my mistake that I don’t want to repeat.”

His face was full of remorse. “Oh. I see. I’m sorry.”

“So, even if you don’t want a label, I do. Even if that label is friends. I need clear intentions. Strings attached, that sort of thing.”

He dropped his head so his chin was almost on his chest as they walked. “We’re both damaged.”

“No,” Marinette said. “We’re both cautious, and that’s okay. We learned from experience.”

He seemed to approve of that sentiment. “That leaves us at stalemate though.”

She pulled her hand out from her pocket and wove it through his arm. “Perhaps.”

His head reared back as he looked at her, startled by her action.

“I’m cold,” she said as an explanation. “And you make a nice windbreak.”

“My car won’t take long to warm up,” Adrien said, looking ahead of them. “It’s not far now.”

Marinette nodded.

“You can have my jacket,” Adrien said, reaching for the buttons.

“This is fine, Adrien,” she replied and tucked her other hand over his arm so she could clasp it properly.

They reached a street corner and hurried across. “Can I ask you something?” he asked when they reached the other side.

“Absolutely.”

“Did you have a crush on me in lycee?”

She flushed and cringed and buried her face in his upper arm. “Did I say that?”

“More or less. You said you tried to ask me out to the movies and I made Nino come along.”

Marinette giggled. “That happened a few times. But yes, I had a crush on you back then.”

His chuckle was nervous. “Wow, really? I’m sorry I was so oblivious.”

“It was a long time ago, and we were young and… well, I was really happy being your friend too.” She bit her lip. “Can I ask _you_ something?”

“Anything.”

“If I hadn’t said anything, no— wait— let me rephrase. If I had responded to your question and offered to show you what I was wearing— if I’d proven I was just like all the other girls who’d you’d gone on dates with, what would you have done?”

“Oh.” He shuffled awkwardly under her hands, and tilted his head back so he could look up at the night sky. “No clue, honestly. I’ve…” He swallowed and squared his shoulders. “I’ve never had a one night stand before but I admit, I was sorely tempted.”

Her heart skipped a beat. That had been one of her sticking points about the contract. Not knowing whether or not he used it as an excuse for no-strings-attached one-night stands. “Never?”

“Not a fan of them. I need an emotional connection.”

She hugged his arm. “I’m the same.”

He ducked his head as he looked at her. “But see… we have that, don’t we? There’s a history there, even if it’s from ten years ago. We were friends, even if we’ve changed, we still… we knew how to be friends then, we can do it now.”

Marinette nodded. “I completely agree.”

He cleared his throat. “So… best case scenario… I guess… uh… well, you were… you were already proving yourself to be completely different than them and … and I… I think that was why I asked you in the first place. To see if you’d offer and then I could… and… come back for more. And…” he rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment. “Sorry, I’m not making much sense.”

“I get the idea. Same situation then. But with sex included,” she mulled quietly. “Probably would’ve hurt more in the long run.”

“What do you mean?”

“I think I may have a solution.”

Adrien sucked in a breath. “Do share.”

“To clarify,” Marinette said, thoughtful. “You want to get to know me better. So we can learn to trust each other and you can determine if you want to take the risk.”

“I do,” he replied, the huskiness in his voice producing a tingle down her spine.

“And you definitely want to see more of my lingerie,” she teased.

Adrien laughed. “Definitely.”

“And this contract?” she asked, concerned. “I mean, it really _is_ a thing, isn’t it?”

“There are ways around it,” Adrien admitted. “Father said it was mostly a way to wheedle out those who were interested in my money or his power over me. I am very certain you’re not after anything.” He chuckled. “Except me.”

“Absolutely true.” Marinette flashed him a smile, one which quickly died. “What if he disowns you again? I don’t want to put you in a position where—”

“Financially stable big boy now,” he told her with a light laugh. “I’m not worried. I’ll be fine.”

“Alright,” she said and stopped walking. Tugging his arm gently as a request to for him to face her, she said, “One month. One month of rendezvous and lingerie snapshots and you respecting me enough not to go out with anyone else.”

He flashed a hopeful smile. “Wouldn’t dream of it. So, like a trial run?”

“We can call it that. We can discuss where we are emotionally at the end of the month, whether we’d be better suited for friends or something else.”

“I really like the sound of that. If you’re okay with it, that is.”

“I already told you I see potential in us. So, at the end of the month, or any time between, if you see that same potential I do, all you need to do is kiss me and we can go from there.”

Adrien’s eyes widened and the sad puppy look returned. “So… I can’t kiss you otherwise?”

“No,” she said and pretended to consider. Offering him her hand, she chirped, “But I’ll let you hold my hand.”

He smiled at her and took her hand, then pressed his lips to the back of it. “You drive a hard bargain, but I’m in.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rendezvous, profiteroles and Sabine the rocker.

For their first rendezvous, Marinette and Adrien met for lunch in Angelina’s Tea Room and indulged their famous Mont Blanc and assortment of pastries.

For their second, they strolled down the Seine and shared a picnic lunch in one of the parks that lined its banks, sipping on wine and nibbling cheese.

The third involved the quiet darkness of a cinema, a scary movie, and handprints on Marinette’s arm because her sweet not-boyfriend couldn’t handle zombies.

The fourth was a sunset stroll through the markets and sampling a variety of foods. The fifth was to one of the many market alleyways littered around the city, tucked away with an exclusive cornucopia of treasures to be discovered.

The sixth wasn’t planned, but Marinette still counted it, because they spent the afternoon gathering supplies for their seventh rendezvous, a Cosplay DJ party at a club that had booked Nino.

The eight was one of the recently popular prisoner escape experiences, featuring the catacombs themselves. The ninth was to an amusement park with Nino and Alya.

The tenth was at Adrien’s place, with Alya and Nino in tow, where they held a movie night and Marinette met his cat. Plagg, the grumpy cat, as Adrien had named him, had spent the entire night camped out on Marinette’s shoulder, purring madly, and refusing to let Adrien near her. Nino thought it hilarious. Adrien didn’t.

Some of the rendezvous were long, some were an hour, but even so, their time together confirmed what she knew about him already. He was funny. Silly. Sweet and kind. He was caring and considerate and wonderful to be around and when he smiled at her, she felt all bubbly and flustered. Her hand felt so nice in his.

He was an avid photographer, snapping all sorts of pictures of the landscapes and surroundings of their dates which she found on his Instagram afterward. She never found pictures solely of her online, and she knew that he snapped some. She was, however, in several of his groups shot, especially with Nino and Alya, with the tagline ‘my best friends’.

With his mass of followers, she could certainly see why he’d be good at travel blogs. People fell over backward to like and comment on his pictures. He wrote an article about exciting places to visit in Paris, including some pictures he’d taken while on their rendezvous.

While his pictures were gorgeous and well planned, her amateur lingerie shots were not, and yet she knew he certainly approved. Never wearing the lingerie herself, she always displayed them on a mannequin. She couldn’t bring herself to trust that much, but she always wore what she told him she would.

Not that he asked to see it. Or even tried to take a peek. She wasn’t sure if that thrilled or frustrated her.

Their physical contact was slowly getting more intimate as well. Held hands gradually slipped to interwoven arms. Hip bumps became lingers. Finger brushing against the skin of her neck as he helped her into a jacket. Tender touches against the shell of her ear as he curled a strand of hair back over it. A hand on his chest as she tied his scarf.

And the hand kisses. Oh, the hand kisses. Her heart beat so much fast from the look in his eyes as he raised her hand to his lips.

Somewhere in the middle of the month, Marinette fell in love. It came with the cat memes in the morning or the text late at night. It came with the way he lit up when he saw her. It came with the way he laughed her name. It came with the quiet moments as well as the exciting ones. It came when he went away for a few days for a photo shoot and she missed him.

It came with the way she didn’t pause to admire his image in magazines because the dorky guy in cat trunks at the heated indoor swimming pool with his hair sticking up everywhere was a more precious memory than any image a magazine could capture.

It was stupid and silly. She was twenty-five, she shouldn’t be pining over him. Shouldn’t be watching the clock until she could close the store. Shouldn’t be checking her messages twenty-five times to see if he messaged. Her heart shouldn’t flutter when she saw him.  Shouldn’t be blushing when Alya or the ladies who worked for her teased her.

She wondered if he was as distracted as she did.

The eleventh was at her parents.

She hadn’t meant for that to happen, but Sabine had run into the pair at the markets. Her sly matchmaker of a mother had spotted them before they’d seen her, and therefore saw the linked hands, so invited him for dinner. Even though Marinette had explained it was all a trial run, Sabine had insisted.

She wasn’t sure if it was a good or bad thing that Adrien actually wanted to go. She loved her parents dearly, but she didn’t want their opinions to sway Adrien in any way. “You know, you don’t have to come.”

He shot her a sad puppy look from the driver’s seat. “Don’t you want me there? I thought I was invited.”

“You are,” she assured him. “And I want you there. Of course, I do. It’s just, it’s my parents.”

“It’s not like I haven’t met them before.”

“There’ll be comments.”

“They’re _parents_ ,” he said, reaching over to squeeze her hand. “Fairly sure that with any normal parents, that’s guaranteed.”

“But… we’re not official or anything and—”

“They’re aware of that.”

“Won’t stop them from trying to force it.”

Taking her hand from her knee, he kissed her fingers. “I’m a big boy. I can handle parents.”

Marinette felt her lips curl into a smile. “You’re lucky you’re so charming.”

Tom, her massive cuddly bear of a father, met her at door. Leaning down, Tom scooped Marinette up without a care in the world. “Here’s my girl,” he said jovially.

Used to her father’s overexcited greetings, Marinette hung on tight as she was twirled in the air, catching sight of Adrien’s startled face on the way around.

Tom plonked Marinette back on the ground, bending down to nuzzle her check.

“Papa,” Marinette complained, feeling the tickle of his mustache. Stepping back, she said, “Papa, you remember Adrien.”

Tom swung his bulk toward the smaller man and held out his hand. “Of course. How could we not? You’re everywhere.”

Marinette’s eyes widened, wondering if her father would dare drop hints about the posters her teenage self had hung on the wall.

Adrien laughed nervously as he shook hands with Tom. “Nice to meet you, sir.”

“Tom,” he corrected and, clasping Adrien’s hand with both of his, he winked. “‘Sir’ is reserved for Sabine’s father.”

Effectively dwarfed next to Tom, Adrien smiled. “I’ll remember that.”

“Maman’s upstairs,” Tom told Marinette. “I’ll finish our dessert for the evening then be right up.”

“ _Oooh_ ,” Marinette purred, trying to move past her father to see what he was baking, but Tom quickly scooted so he was blocking the door to the bakery. “Aww, Papa, I wanna see.”

“Good children wait until after dinner.”

“Naughty children see straight away,” Marinette replied, ducking under her father’s arm, only to be caught by the waist and spun so she was heading back toward the stairs.

“You haven’t got by me yet,” Tom laughed. “Don’t think you can start now.”

“One of these days,” Marinette warned him.

“Be off with you!”

Marinette bounced up the stairs. “Come on, Adrien,” she said and glanced over her shoulder in time to see Adrien get caught trying to sneak a peek at what Tom was baking.

“You need to get up early to get around me,” Tom said, laughing harder as he made shooing motions with his hands. “But I’m glad you tried. Means you have good taste.”

Adrien shuffled up the stairs after her, looking like a cat that had its cream stolen.

“Did you see?” Marinette asked, curious, as she climbed up the stairs toward her parent's apartment.

“No,” Adrien grumbled, then brightened. “But it’s chocolate, whatever it is. There was a pot of it on the table.”

Marinette licked her lips. “Papa, are you making eclairs?”

Tom mock scowled at her from the bottom of the stairs. “Go, Marinette.”

Marinette pretended to huff and rounded the top of the staircase. She peered down the gap in the banisters. “Opera cake?”

“You’ll find out,” Tom called.

“I bet its profiteroles,” Marinette told Adrien. “Papa’s are”—she kissed her fingers—“divine.”

“Sounds amazing,” Adrien said. He glanced down between the banisters. “I’m jealous. I’d kill for a hug from my father. He’d _never_ give me one like that.”

While the thought Adrien couldn’t get affection from his father made Marinette sad, she tried to keep the mood light. “I’m sure Papa would give you one if you asked him nicely.”

Adrien laughed at that. “No. I’m good.”

They walked into Marinette’s parents’ apartment to find Sabine in the kitchen, singing loudly along to Bohemian Rhapsody. Something delicious simmered on the stove behind her, completely ignored as the music reached the iconic head bashing moment and Sabine went all out. Black hair twirled through the air as Sabine jumped and head bashed in time with the music.

Marinette giggled at the sheer astonishment on Adrien’s face. “Maman was full rocker in her younger years,” she said, unbuttoning her coat. “It still comes out sometimes.”

In an action intrinsic to his nature, he helped her out of her coat while staring at Sabine. “Wow. That’s impressive.”

“Maman and Papa met at a Led Zeppelin concert.”

Adrien tore his gaze away. “They’re why you like Jagged Stone so much?”

“You like him too,” Marinette replied, and hung her coat on the rack by the door.

“We should get tickets for his next performance.”

From the kitchen, where she was rocking out, Sabine called, “Jagged Stone is a Mick Jagger wannabe.”

“You take that back!” Marinette returned in mock rage. “Jagged Stone is a gift to this world.”

Laughing, Sabine picked up the music remote from the kitchen and lowered the volume. “Salut, Adrien,” she said, coming over to greet them both with cheek kisses. “It’s great to see you again.” Hands on his upper arms, she looked Adrien up and down. “I didn’t get to mention it last time, but you’ve grown up so well. Such a handsome face.”

“Thank you, Madame Dupain-Cheng,” he said, bowing a little.

“Still overly polite I see,” she said with a smile and a wink at Marinette. “We’ll knock that out of you. And please, call me Sabine.”

“I brought wine,” Adrien said, offering Sabine the bottle. “Marinette said you were fond of red.”

“Ooh lovely,” Sabine said. “Marinette?”

“Yes Maman,” Marinette said, heading to the wine glass cabinet. “On it.” Marinette smiled to herself as she listened to Sabine pepper Adrien with questions. She set out four glasses on the end of the bench, fetching the bottle opener. Placing it on the bench beside the wine glasses, Marinette caught Adrien’s eye to let him know it was there. He used it as an opportunity to walk further into the apartment and avoid some of Sabine’s questions.

To distract her mother, Marinette lifted the lid of the pot on the stove. “What’s for dinner?”

True to form, Sabine was instantly across the room and shooing Marinette out of the kitchen. “It’s a winter stew.”

With a grin and a wink at Adrien, she pressed, “Can I help?”

“No, honey. I’m fine.”

Marinette was shooed until she stood beside Adrien. “What about bread, can I cut up anything?”

“Papa made extra crunchy bread for it,” Sabine said. “He’ll be up in a moment. Go share a wine with Adrien.”

“Okay,” Adrien whispered as he uncorked the wine. “You warned me. I didn’t listen.”

“Oh, handsome boy,” Marinette purred at him and stroked her hand across his shoulder blades as she walked toward the living space. “They’ve only just started.”

Once the initial meet and greet was over, and all ice was broken, Marinette was unsurprised with how well Adrien got on with her parents. The four of them sat around the benched table, sharing wine, stew, buttered bread and as many stories as they could think of. Conversation slipped from one topic to another like an easy river, natural and slow while still allowing a bit of winding.

“I like him,” Sabine told her as the pair cleared the table while the men chatted in the kitchen while they did the dishes.

“I like him too,” Marinette replied, smiling as she watched Adrien joke with Tom.

“It’s been a while since I saw the smile of passion grace your lips.”

Marinette cringed. “Maman. Please. It’s not like that.”

Sabine touched Marinette’s cheek, sweeping her fingers across it to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear. “You have so much love to give, Marinette. Don’t let one past mistake ruin a chance for you to be happy.”

“I don’t want to push him.”

Sabine tapped Marinette’s chin. “Then you take your best pieces of lingerie and you don’t give him a chance to turn you down.”

“Maman!” Marinette scolded.

“Oh please,” Sabine said. “It’s obvious he likes you. He might just need some incentive to-”

“It’s not a question of that,” Marinette said. “I told you, there’s a contract we have to deal with too.”

Sabine lost her playful mood. “That’s just wrong. How can his father possibly ask that of him?”

“I know,” Marinette replied with a nod. “But I won’t ask him to break it until he’s sure.”

Sabine sighed. “Okay. I understand.”

“Marinette!” Tom boomed. “Why didn’t you tell me he played Mecha Strike?”

“Ahh, cause I didn’t know?” Marinette replied, flicking her gaze to Adrien, who shrugged at her sheepishly.

“Fire it up!” Tom continued, waving his hands. “This warrants an epic showdown!”

* * *

 

It was late when Adrien and Marinette left her parents place. Tom had been stifling yawns and Marinette knew he had an early start, so hurried Adrien out the door. The streets of Paris was quiet as Adrien drove Marinette back to her apartment. Marinette watched the light snow dance in the headlights and wondered if it would still be there in the morning, or if it would vanish with the waking sun.

“I really enjoyed myself tonight,” Adrien said. “Your parents are so much fun.”

“They are.”

“You were pretty quiet toward the end,” he said. “Can’t handle having your ass kicked at Mecha Strike?”

“Excuse me?” she returned. “Who beat you into the ground nine out of ten games?”

“Still beat you that once,” he replied. “It counts!”

Marinette laughed. “Okay.”

They dipped into companionable silence, listening to the soft music on the radio.

As they neared her apartment, Adrien smiled at her, “I’m off to Milan on tomorrow night. Nino’s coming with me.”

Marinette nodded. “I remember. There’s that fashion show he’s DJing for.”

“And I’m walking in,” Adrien reminded her.

“Oh, are you?” she teased. “You must be a big shot in the fashion world if you’re attending a walk he’s DJing in.”

Adrien laughed and pressed his hand to his chest in mock pain. “Oooh, got me there. Killed me dead.”

Marinette laughed.  

Putting both hands back on the wheel, he slowed for a traffic light. “Can I bring you back anything special?”

“Just yourself. That’s special enough for me.”

“I won’t be able to talk much while I’m there,” he said. “My father thinks I’ve been distracted lately and I need to pretend I’m not.”

Marinette felt her lips curl into a smile and she reached over to rest her hand on his knee. “Are you distracted, Adrien?”

“Immensely,” he purred at her and dragged his eyes off the road long enough to wink. “Even more so now.”

 Marinette laughed and removed her hand. “Can’t distract the driver.”

“Please do.”

With a giggle, she put her hand back, pleased when he dropped his hand down to cover it.

“Will you miss me while I’m gone?”

“I might,” she replied. “Or I might use this time to party hard with Alya so it will be over before I know it.”

“I like the sound of that,” he said. Flicking the indicator on, he parked in a space outside her apartment building. “Here we are, my lady. Home, safe and sound.”

She stalled, pulling on her gloves to buy herself more time with him. “Do you want to come up?”

Adrien’s eyes blew wide and he swallowed hard. “Ahh... Oh… Um....”

“The trifecta of embolalia,” Marinette joked, trying to lighten the mood and save face. “All we need is an ‘er’. Not a good sign.”

“Marinette, I—I—”

“No pressure,” Marinette said, wrestling with her glove as she felt herself begging to babble. Her stupid glove wouldn’t go on properly, her fingers couldn’t find the holes. “I just thought we could have a nightcap or two. To round off the evening, cause it’s been such a good night and I love spending time with you and—you don’t have to worry about accepting, it was just a thought and now I feel kind of silly even mentioning it—”

A sudden movement from him stuck the words in her throat. Two fingers on her chin and then his lips pressed tenderly against her cheek.

Marinette froze.

“I haven’t heard Nettie-babble in years,” he said, nosing her cheek. “I wasn’t sure you could still babble, but I’m really pleased you haven’t outgrown it. It’s adorable.”

Breath whooshed out of her. “You had a name for that?”

“We did.” One last nuzzle and he sat back. “I would love to come up, but, unfortunately, I have an early start tomorrow. Raincheck?”

She nodded, trying not to seem like the heat from her face was affecting her. “Absolutely. Goodnight, Adrien.”

“Night, Marinette.”

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Credit to MidnightStarlightwrites for Tom and Sabine’s Led Zepplin meeting idea. Just a bit of fun!


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Glitter treasure trail

Sitting up the back row, in a darkened corner, Marinette shredded her program nervously. Streams of conversation rumbled through the room as people chatted to each other while waiting for the show to begin, but all Marinette could feel was the incredible anxiety buried deep in her belly and the urge to run screaming.

Alya reached over and slipped her hand into Marinette's “Breathe, honey. You’ve gone white.”

“I shouldn’t be here,” Marinette said, swinging her head from side to side. “I shouldn’t be sitting here. I should be out the back, making sure everything’s going smoothly.”

“That’s what you hired a dresser for,” Alya reminded her.

So many worst-case scenarios were firing off in her head and she couldn’t stop them. “What if she does it wrong? What if something breaks? What if the model falls over or it doesn't fit or— why the hell did I let you talk me into this?”

Alya rolled her eyes. “Because a year ago, you made yourself a promise to enter this year—and made me promise to help you—and six months ago we both sat down and went through the entry form and you’ve spent the last six months perfecting these designs. Breathe. It’s your _best_ stuff.”

Marinette allowed herself a deep breath in, letting it out slowly. “Okay. You’re right. I know you’re right. You know you’re right. We know you’re—”

“Marinette,” Alya said, squeezing her hand. “Calm.”

“Okay.” Marinette took a shuddering breath. “But what if—”

“The models are fine,” Alya soothed. “The dresser is fine. Your designs are brilliant. I am incredibly proud of you. You got this.”

Closing her eyes, Marinette concentrated on her breathing and the feeling of Alya’s hand clasping hers. “Thank God you’re here. I wouldn’t survive without you.”

Alya bumped her shoulder against Marinette’s. “There is nowhere else I’d rather be.”

The music swelled, the lights dimmed and the show started.

There were simple designs and outrageous designs. Designs with feathers or sequins. Designs that were practical and some that were not. Sports bras, swimwear, sleepwear, lingerie sets, baby dolls and teddies galore, no undergarment was unrepresented.

Seven pieces of her lingerie had been chosen to appear in the catwalks. Thirty budding designers such as herself, all vying for attention from the larger houses in an effort to spread their brands. Afterward, there would be a gala so that fashion houses could speak to the designers in the hope of stocking their clothes. Each model wore a number so that designer could be identified later.

Marinette bit her tongue, clutching at Alya when her first piece walked onto the stage. Diverting her eyes, she swept her eyes across the audience, trying to gauge reactions. Interest was politely excited, nods of approval or tilting heads to get a better look. Some even seemed to be taking notes.

“It looks amazing!” Alya proclaimed.

The longer the catwalk went on, the more Marinette relaxed. Her mind started wandering as she studied the products of her fellow designers, analyzing the designs and making notes of what she might do differently to represent her own brand. Every now and then, Alya would nudge her and whisper appreciation for something she saw up on stage and Marinette would make mental notes.

Because she specialized in feminine attire, she hadn’t really been paying attention to the male models. Just idly watching and admiring both physique and lingerie until she recognized a derriere.

Marinette clapped her hand down on Alya’s arm and hung on for dear life.

Alya winced in pain. “Marinette, wha—?”

“It’s _Adrien_.”

Hair slicked back on his head, makeup stark and striking, skin glittering, Adrien looked like he’d been etched form starlight. Straight-faced and stiff back and _oh my_ , his perfect body. She’d seen him in swimming trunks and a t-shirt, but even water slicked cloth had nothing on bare skin and briefs.

“Oh. _Fuck me_ ,” she breathed in awe.

“Honey,” Alya said, similarly star-struck. “You totally need to expand your stock.”

“Do I ever.” Was she drooling? Did she care?

He looked nothing like his natural self. No happy-go-lucky, no winking smile. He looked… bored. Sad. Tired. Going through the motions.

Or maybe she was over analyzing. Maybe this was his model face. Professional, aloof. Untouchable.

She hadn’t even thought to look for him. She hadn’t told him she’d be here. The Gabriel line wasn’t part of the show, they didn’t even have a lingerie line, so why was he here?

Blank eyes swept across the sea of people as he rounded the corner of the U-shaped platform and walked in her direction. She saw the exact moment he spotted her in the crowd. Lips parted, he broke stride for a second and his eyes seemed to ignite.

He locked his eyes on her and held.

Everyone around her seemed to disappear. Shrouded in fog and film, all she could see was the shining light ahead of her. Even his movement seemed to slow. The swagger, the sway of his hips, the muscles on his legs, the way the glitter on his sparkling chest seemed to direct gaze downward, except she couldn’t look because she was lost in his forest green gaze which was utterly devoted to her.

Her heart pounded in her chest so heart she was sure it was going to burst from her chest and throw itself at him. Her eyes, while focused on his, took in everything, storing away his image to be conjured up at a later time.

 “Gurl, you got it bad,” Alya giggled.

She would surrender completely to him if he asked. “Uh-huh.”

The spell broke as he turned the corner and left the platform.

Marinette had never wanted to fan her face as much as she did right then.

 

* * *

 

Marinette sighed in contented exhaustion. Her feet hurt, her face was sore from smiling and greeting people, her voice was beginning to become raspy, and she was glad for the moment of peace.

The show had been a success in her book. All her pieces drew interest, and as she stood in her small booth afterward with them on display, she had had a steady stream of visitors. Her stack of business cards had run so low, Chelsea had come to her rescue, delivering some more.

She’d fired off several introductory emails as per requested by some of the houses who had approached her and she was feeling great about the interest.

 Now, as the event dwindled to a close, she was getting a chance to relax while Alya had wandered off to look at the other designer booths and steal a plate of nibbles from the buffet.

Marinette had seen Adrien among the crowd a few times. Longing glances, secret smiles, and special waves, she knew he wouldn’t be able to approach her. There were too many people here in the fashion industry, including all the Gabriel representatives. Too many that knew him and could, potentially, report to his father. He wouldn’t risk it.

She didn’t mind. She’d been incredibly busy as it was. But it would’ve been nice to say hello.

“Marinette. What a _pleasant_ surprise.”

Marinette froze. The way ‘pleasant’ was said sent a chill down her spine. She hadn’t expected to see him here. Not now. Not ever. Just when her life was starting to look up. Etching her face into a steely expression, she turned. “Jacquez.”

She didn’t like him. She didn’t like the way his eyes slid all over her. She didn’t like the smile, something she used to find so charming. It was funny how quickly her feelings had turned from admiration to repulsion, but then, his actions had deserved her ire.

She had to hide her reaction. There were still representatives around. And if _he_ was one of the representative undoubted he was going to milk it for all he was worth.

Professional. She could be professional.

“I’d heard you went into lingerie but I never expected to see you at one of these. I didn’t think you had the drive. Or the skill.”

“There’s a lot you never bothered to learn about me.”

Eyebrow raised, he glanced over to her display mannequins. “Quaint, but not at all risky. Just like in University. You’ve not grown at all.”

She bit back a retort by grinding her teeth and tried to maintain civility. It wouldn’t be good if she punched him in the nose. Even if it would make her feel better. “What are you doing here?”

The stupid smirk widened. “Representing Gabriel.”

Of course. Her luck couldn’t get any worse.

“The representative group is slowly making their way here and I’m their frontman,” he informed her with that insufferable drawl of his. “This can go one of two ways. One, I can hurry them past and say you’re not worth their time. Or,” he winked at her. “I can put in a good word—if you can make it worth my while.”

Marinette felt a surge of anger and her hands clenched into fists. She wondered how many young designers fell prey to this man. To be brazenly approaching her like this, with their history, he either must be desperate or have the act down pat by now and felt no need to put on a show of pretending to woo her. “And what would that be.”

His eyes stroked her again, with an added suggestive look.

“Not happening.”

“We used to be so good together.” He shrugged. “But fine. Give me one of your designs, with your fancy hidden signature removed this time, and I’ll make sure Monsieur Agreste stops at your booth personally. ”

 Marinette narrowed her eyes. “You’re _still_ stealing designs? You were expelled for that.”

Jacquez scoffed. “C’mon, Marinette,” he said and had the gall to try and touch her hair. “We’re friends, aren’t we? This is how the business works, you know that.”

“We were never friends, Jacquez,” Marinette snarled. “You stole my designs and then you used me and I was stupid enough to think—” she huffed out a breath. “I’ll take my chances.”

He raised his hands and gave her an ‘I tried to warn you’ gesture.

She grit her teeth. How he’d managed to score a job at Gabriel when she’d been absolutely certain he’d been expelled? Had he somehow paid someone off? Given his carefully concealed slime ball nature, she wouldn’t be surprised. It had taken her a year to figure out his game and there had undoubtedly been other girls who’d fallen for his charm only to be betrayed.

She had to warn Adrien about this guy.

She’d have to admit there was a lot more to the story than what she’d told him, but she could handle that. She would’ve told him eventually. And she’d have to do it without alerting others that she and Adrien were close.

 “You’re making a mistake,” Jacquez said, his expression brightening as he looked beyond Marinette. “Last chance.”

“There is nothing you have that I could _ever_ want.” She refused to be mollified by Jacquez. And she would never stay silent about his antics. Had he forgotten that? It didn’t work last time, it wouldn’t work now.

 “Ahh. Adrien!” he chirped and moved away. “I was just coming to find you. I have some delightful designers for you to meet. This way.”

 Marinette turned in time to see Jacquez throw an arm around Adrien’s shoulder and turn him away from her booth, and Adrien’s frown in response.

She didn’t hear what Jacquez said next, but Adrien’s expression flatlined and Marinette felt her heart sink.

She mightn’t be able to alert his companions they were close. But she could say they went to school together. _That_ was public record. Of course… so was his Instagram, and she was on there, listed as a friend. So really, what did they have to lose? “Adrien,” she called. “Are you that run off your feet you don’t even have time to say hello to a friend?”

Adrien lifted his head and beamed, and the asshole stiffened. “Marinette, you know how it is.” Shaking himself free from Jacquez, he approached her with a smile. “You look wonderful.”

She held out her hand for him to shake, only to have him take it and pull her in to kiss both her cheeks in greeting.

“You know her?” Jacquez said, with a hint of fear in his voice.

“Absolutely,” Adrien said, keeping her hand and clasping it with both of his. “She’s one of my best friends.”

Oh, the look on Jacquez’s face was satisfying.  

Adrien cast a look at her booth. “So it _was_ your designs. I thought I recognized them backstage. They’re amazing.” His eyes landed on one particular set and Marinette watched with glee as he tried to contain himself. After all, she’d worn that one, even if he hadn’t seen her in it. Somehow he managed to keep a straight face as he said, “That one is my favorite, I think.”

 “Mine too. It feels _divine_ when you wear it,” Marinette replied, watching as the slight pinkening of his ears betrayed him. “I didn’t realize you would be here,” she said, “Or I would have told you I was a part of the design team. I didn’t think Gabriel had a lingerie department.”

“We don’t,” Adrien replied. “Not an official one. My father firmly believes that in leaving ladies… unmentionables... for the ladies to design. After all, you know yourselves the best.”

She giggled. “Prudent.”

“But we’re hoping to expand our stock available in stores, so we’re looking into partnering with some smaller houses, or,” he winked, “seeing if there’s talent we can poach.”

Jacquez tried to interrupt. “Adrien, we really have designers we need to meet.”

“I know, and I’m meeting one,” Adrien said, his hands still clasping Marinette’s as he turned his gaze to Jacquez. “Which reminds me, why did you say Marinette wasn’t worth my time?”

Jacquez blanched. “I think you might’ve misheard me.”

“Jacquez and I have a _history_ ,” Marinette said, meeting Adrien’s eyes and hoping he’d get the message. He wouldn’t get all the message, but enough to know there was bad blood between them.

Adrien’s hands tightened around hers and the smile dimmed.

“ _You_!” Alya roared.

Jacquez spun, raising his hands defensively. “Oh shit.”

The firestorm approached, blazing red hair, and a stormy expression, Alya looked set to gut him. As she stalked toward him, she pulled off her stiletto shoes and clutched them as weapons.

Marinette used that distraction to tell Adrien, “You need to check _all_ of his designs for plagiarism.”

Jacquez skittered backward away from the oncoming terror and began actively searching for somewhere to hide. “Alya. It's nice to see you again.”

Adrien studied Marinette. “Do you speak from experience?” he asked in a low voice.

It hurt to admit, but she had to be truthful. “Yes.”

Alya’s expression wasn’t the only one that reached epic hurricane of doom proportions.

“I always hoped I’d get this chance,” Alya spat. “You’re going to regret what you did.”

Realizing that Alya was one step away from braining Jacquez with her shoe, Marinette released Adrien’s hands and stepped between Jacquez and Alya. “Alya,” she murmured in a quiet, controlled voice. “Not here.”

Alya tried to get around Marinette. “I don’t care—”

Marinette clasped Alya’s upper arms to stop her. “Time and place,” she told her and cast a pointed look around. They were drawing attention and this was her reputation on the line. 

Alya focused on Marinette briefly, before her attention was back on Jacquez. “You and me. Outside. Let’s go. I have _words_ saved up for you. Lots of big words that need to delivered with force.”

“My dear,” Jacquez said, obviously trying to save face. “I do not know what you’re talking about.”

“I can announce it to the _entire_ world, if you like,” Alya threatened.

Adrien stepped between Alya and Marinette, and Jacquez. With a look that silenced everyone, he held out his card to Marinette. “Send me your introductory information,” he said, then turned to face Jacquez. “Come with me.”

 

* * *

 

Marinette cuddled on her sofa with Alya. Seeing Jacquez again had brought bad memories to the forefront of her mind. Had she’d been prepared to see him, she would have been fine, but being blindsided like that upset her equilibrium and it had all come crashing down as she and Alya had packed up the booth.

Alya had called Nino, who’d gone on an ice-cream and chocolate run and delivered Alya a change of clothes and her pajamas, before retreating home to allow the girls to talk it out.

“You should’ve let me brain him,” Alya muttered. She sat with her back wedged between the armrest and the back of the sofa and allowed Marinette to cuddle between her legs, with the ice-cream tub on Marinette’s lap. “I’ve been itching to for years.”

“I know,” Marinette said and licked her spoon. “Would’ve liked to have seen it too, but there were too many people around.”

Alya dropped her spoon down to scoop out some more ice-cream. “I suppose I could’ve taken him out the back quietly and brained him there, but I was just so angry when I saw him. This prick ruined your life. How dare he come back now when things are looking up?” She made angry noises as she gulped down her spoonful of ice cream.

“He can’t hurt me anymore,” Marinette said, smiling as Tikki, her little cinnamon hamster, crawled down over Alya’s shoulder and across Marinette’s chest as she tried to score some ice cream.

“Damn right, he can’t,” Alya said, sour. “If he tries, I will punch his lights out.”

Marinette scooped Tikki up and tucked her against her chest for smooches. “Thanks for being here, Alya.”

Alya closed her arms around Marinette to squeeze her. “You know my biggest regret is Nino and I were abroad for that mess. I’m glad I was here this time.”

 A knock on the door caused Tikki to start chittering and prancing around.

“Did Nino forget his key?” Marinette asked, kicking the blanket off their legs.

“Probably,” Alya replied. “But I didn’t think he was coming back.”

Passing the tub of ice cream to Alya, Marinette hauled herself up. Clutching the wriggling Tikki to her chest, she went to answer the door.

Adrien stood at the other side, still dressed in the suit he wore to the gala. He looked exhausted and harried, and yet there he was, standing at her door.  “Salut, Marinette, I was—” he blurted, then cringed as he took in the fact that she was in her over-sized flannel pajamas. “Were you asleep?”

“No,” Marinette replied as Tikki ran from her chest to her shoulder. “No, it's fine.”

“Who’s this little cutie?” Adrien asked, offering the hamster his fingers.

“This is Tikki,” Marinette replied, turning her head to give her a kiss as Tikki responded to her name with a chitter.

“She’s adorable,” Adrien said.

“Do you want to come in?”

“Please,” Adrien said, following her inside.

Marinette helped him out of his coat and hung it on the rack beside hers while Adrien wandered down the small hallway into the one-bedroom apartment. Since she and Tikki lived alone, Marinette didn’t need a large living space. One decent-sized living space, which doubled as a sewing room, a small kitchen and bathroom, and her bedroom. All her sewing equipment was packed neatly away in the cabinet in the corner, ready to be brought out at a moment’s notice beside an artist’s desk and bench. A single three-seater sofa in front of her TV and a small coffee table.

Upon spotting him, Alya vacated the sofa. “Salut Adrien.”

Adrien greeted her with a warm smile. “Was I interrupting something?”

Marinette gathered up Tikki, returning her to her hut by the TV, much to Tikki’s disgust. “Just a pity party.”

“It was supposed to be a celebration,” Alya said from the kitchen where she was putting away the ice-cream. “But some prick decided to ruin it.”

Adrien shuffled awkwardly and dropped his eyes. “So, that was the ex?”

Marinette looked at a spot on the floor. “In a manner speaking.”

“That,” Alya announced, her voice filled with ire, “was a lying scumbag who deserves to have his balls ripped off and stuffed up his nose, just so he can smell how horrible he is. And then—”

“Alya, can we have a minute?” Marinette asked as Adrien turned an alarming shade of green.

Alya swept her cell off the bench.  “Yeah. Sure. I need to call Nino,” she muttered and headed for Marinette’s bedroom.

Adrien turned to her. “I didn’t know you were going to be there.”

“I’m sorry I didn’t mention it. It was something Alya and I have working toward for months. And Gabriel doesn’t do lingerie, so I assumed…” she laughed without humor and flopped on her sofa. “What a mess. That is not how I wanted you to find out.”

Adrien sat on her coffee table before her, knees on either side of hers, and reached out to cup both of her hands and cradle them in his. “He stole from you.”

Marinette dropped her eyes since it was easier to talk to him when she couldn’t gauge his reactions. “He… yes… the… um…” She puffed out a hard breath and tried to form her thoughts into words while Adrien waited patiently. “We worked together on projects before. I was so desperate to prove myself that I carried him and did all the work.”

Adrien’s thumb stroked against her hands, a soothing gesture which encouraged her to speak more.

“After I found him in bed with… um… the… the break up was messy and… things went missing. Among them were my sketchbooks. Turns out, he… submitted almost all of my designs as part of his portfolio at the end of the semester.”

She raised her head and met his compassionate eyes. “I reported his ass. He said I was just bitter and sore. We had to go to the University disciplinary board and he’s proclaiming his innocence and how I was out to get him because I was jealous. Until I pointed out _my_ signature in every single design he’d submitted. As far as I knew, he’d been expelled.”

“What did he say to you today?”

Marinette cringed.

Adrien released one of her hands to touch her cheek, then her shoulder to offer comfort. “He’s under investigation for fraud,” he explained. “My father grew concerned about his credentials as his designs have all been… well, my father said they were disjointed. There was no theme, they were so vastly different from each other. Most designers find that niche, he’s all over the place. He’s been lobbying to get Gabriel into the lingerie market and Father was curious why he was so intent on it, so I was sent to watch him. After… after we spoke to you, I went around to all the designers he’d spoken to and I had two reports tonight of him trying to coerce… sex or designs… and using my name to do that.” 

Marinette squeezed shut her eyes. She knew he hated to be used. It must be just as hard on him as it was on her. “Oh, Adrien, I’m so sorry.”

Adrien leaned forward, bringing their foreheads together. “Tell me he didn’t. Not to you.”

“Adrien…”

“God damn it.”

“It’s not your fault.”

“If I’d known that’s what he was doing, I would’ve stopped it. Warned you. I never expected this. I mean, he seemed like a nice guy. Friendly and polite, little too open with his sexual prowess, but all round, he seemed okay.”

“Sounds like he’s stepped up his game.”

Adrien’s voice was husky and low. “Marinette… can I ask… I mean, tell me if I’m out of line, but…what— why were you with him?”

Marinette sighed. “I was young. He was so charming, to begin with. Lavished attention on me but… he… he also tried to direct the way I was designing. Little niggles, pieces of advice that sounded right, but felt that little bit off. Then he was directing the way I dressed, how I did my hair, everything. Before I knew it, I was under his thumb and _allowing_ him to copy designs off me and… Starstruck by first grown-up romance and it made me stupid.”

“I’m so sorry that happened to you.”

“While I might be moping now, I’m okay.” She giggled and pushed her head forward to nudge him and tease. “And I have a _very_ nice image in my head of you. _Mmm_.”

Although Adrien laughed, his ears went red. “Liked that, did you?”

“Very much.”

“Glad to be of service.” His voice took on a softer tone. “I’m relieved you’re alright. I was so worried.”

Marinette closed her eyes. He was almost too good to be true. He’d come here, in the dead of night, after dealing with that to see if _she_ was okay.  “Adrien?”

“Yes?”

“Can I hug you?”

Instead of responding, Adrien gathered her into his arms and pulled her into his chest. Marinette scooted forward to kneel on the floor, between his legs, and looped her arms around him and let herself be swallowed up by his body, safe and warm.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've had a couple of requests for Adrien's point of view and I just want to say I'm not going to be switching at any time. That's the uncertainty of falling in love, you never know what the other person is truly thinking, you just have to interpret their actions. This is exclusively Marinette.
> 
> Also, I'm wondering how many writing cliches I can hit before this is over. I don't really like creating characters with the sole purpose of causing drama between the main couple. So I didn't.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alya is a crafty fox.

Nino and Alya had always been avid thrill seekers and adventurers, hiking and traveling all over the world as Nino followed his DJing dreams and Alya worked on the road as an online journalist. They hit all the thrill spots, often sending Marinette photos from activities like abseiling at the Grand Canyon or the scuba diving at the Great Barrier Reef.

So it came as no surprise when Alya rushed into Lucky Ladybug to purchase lingerie for an extended weekend away skiing at the French Alps.

Halfway through Alya’s mad rush to pick the perfect lingerie, Veroniqué, beckoned her to the phone. “Sorry to interrupt,” she said, “but he said it was an emergency.”

“Salut,” she said, accepting the phone.

“Salut, it’s me.”

“Adrien?” Marinette blurted, wondering why he’d called Lucky Ladybug’s line instead of leaving a message. “What’s wrong? What’s the emergency? Are you—”

“Nothing,” Adrien rushed. “I just don’t have a lot of time and I needed to give you enough notice. I was due in makeup like... five minutes ago.”

“Notice for what?” she asked, glancing over at Alya with a frown.

“I don’t know if Alya’s had a chance to gossip yet, but—”

“She and Nino are going away. Alya’s here right now,” Marinette said and narrowed her eyes at Alya’s sudden gleeful look and happy bounce. Across the other side of the room, Chelsea turned her head from where she was helping a customer and smothered a grin.

“Ahh. Good. Cause, ahh, Nino said there was a mistake made in the booking and he’s somehow managed to score a cottage with two bedrooms and, er,” Adrien squeaked and cleared his throat so he could speak with a stronger voice. “He wants to know if we want to come too.”

Marinette’s jaw dropped. “ _What did you do_?” she mouthed at Alya.

“Say yes,” Alya prompted and clutched her arm. “C’mon, bae, it’ll be a blast.”

“I realize this is short notice,” Adrien rushed. “But I was hoping you’d be free. And I would never impose on you. Nino promised me a common area, so I’ll sleep on the sofa.”

“I… er…”

Marinette heard his name called in the background of where he was and then Adrien swore softly. “I need to go. Look, talk to Alya, get all the details and I’ll call during my break, okay? Absolutely no pressure at all. Just think about it.”

Marinette barely managed to squeak out an ‘okay’ before Adrien was gone. Hanging up, she stared at Alya.

“Skiing,” Alya prompted, grinning madly. “Four days, three nights. Warm fires and hot cocoa. Snow angels and snowball fights. The thrill of racing down a mountainside to get your blood charged and your heart pumping. The old cliché of bed sharing. C’mon Marinette, what have you got to lose?”

“Alya,” Marinette scolded, folding her arms on her chest. “We’re not even there yet.”

“Then maybe this weekend is the perfect chance for it. I already know you’re not working.”

“Yes, I am—”

Alya grinned gleefully. “I bribed Chelsea to cover your shift tomorrow with tickets to Nino’s next performance and Veroniqué is closing tonight. Plus Rose said she’d come on for Saturday as backup. You’re covered.”

“Covered— This is my livelihood! I can’t abandon it for the weekend!”

“We’ll be fine,” Veroniqué piped up. “I can’t remember that last time you took a full day off, Marinette, let alone a holiday.”

Marinette gave Veroniqué a flat look. “Sundays. I take Sundays off and—”

“Everyone takes Sunday’s off.” Alya took Marinette’s shoulders. “They got this,” she insisted. “Trust your employees.”

Chelsea, having directed her customer to the fitting rooms, joined the conversation. “We got this, Marinette,” she said earnestly. “We really do. Let us do this for you.”

Marinette looked between the three girls as they smiled earnestly at her. “You think of everything don’t you?”

“Looking out for my best friend, that’s all,” Alya chirped happily. “You need to get back on the horse and, as horses go, Adrien would be a spectacular r—”

“Ah-ah-ah no!” she said, her cheeks reddening. “You don’t get to think about him that way!”

“As long as you do,” Alya said and twisted back toward the shop. Tapping her chin, she winked at the other two girls. “We have more than enough time to find the perfect piece for her.”

Marinette’s eyes widened as Chelsea and Veroniqué looked gleeful. “Alya—”

“Train leaves at five,” Alya said, pulling Marinette behind her as she marched toward the teddies. “You’ll be back in time for opening on Monday. Pinky promise.”

That’s how Marinette found herself escorted home to pack, with several pairs of Alya approved lingerie to choose from, then bundled into a train heading to the French Alps.

* * *

Marinette worked diligently on her laptop as it rested on the small fold-out bench in the compartment they’d booked for the train. As much as she wanted to start this weekend, she needed to get a bit of paperwork done so she wouldn’t have to worry about it. Friday was normally her paperwork day, but as she’d be skiing, there were purchase orders and payments to be done today. With a six-hour train ride ahead, she had time. She’d already sent a message to her mother, asking her to check her in on her shop and take care of Tikki over the weekend, and called Rose to make sure she was available if the girls needed it.

Both women told her to stop fussing and enjoy the weekend. It seemed everyone had high expectations of this weekend, but it just made Marinette nervous.

She and Adrien were nearly at the end of their self-appointed month and now they were in this overly romantic situation for four days. Marinette _wanted_ something to happen, she just didn’t want to feel like he was being forced into making a decision before he was ready, and going away felt like it invited that sort of trouble.

Sighing, she peeked up to check on the others.

Alya sat in the chair opposite with her earbuds in as she worked on a story. Nino paced the corridor outside, talking to his agent. Adrien, having already taken pictures of the train and the view through the window, was stretched out on the seat beside her, using his cell. Noticing her looking around, he smiled. “How’s it going?”

“Nearly done,” she replied. “Sorry about this.”

“No,” Adrien said. “Take your time. You were rushed out with so little notice.” His face lit up. “One might say you were _railroaded_ into coming.”

Marinette laughed. “Maybe, but at least I’m not on the wrong _track_.”

Adrien lifted his feet off the seat and scooted closer. “I promise, I’ll _conduct_ myself like a gentleman.”

She scrunched up her nose in thought, then grinned. “Skiing is a good way to let off some _steam.”_

“That pun was _engine_ -ous,” he laughed.

“It made a great _one-liner_.”

“Geeze,” Alya said, closing her laptop. “Listen to you two. If you’re gonna flirt like that all weekend, I’m going to need to start drinking now.”

“Maybe you should catch the _express_ and order some wine,” Adrien said.

Snorting with the effort to suppress laughter, Alya got to her feet. “Sounds like… um…oh! just the _ticket_. I’ll be right back.”

Adrien turned back to Marinette the moment Alya closed the compartment door behind her. “I’m serious though. I know this was incredibly short notice and I wouldn’t have minded if you said you couldn’t come.”

“Adrien—”

He seemed overly concerned. “I don’t want you to be uncomfortable or worried—”

“No,” Marinette said, reaching up to touch his cheek. “I’m glad I came. I really am.”

Adrien smiled at her. “Just promise me you won’t laugh tomorrow. I haven’t been skiing in years. There’s probably a dozen snowdrifts up there that have my name on them.”

Marinette returned his smile with a bright one of her own. “Last time I went, I managed to twist my ankle on my first slope because I was a complete klutz and crashed into a tree.”

He smiled. “We’ll have to look out for each other then.”

“Laugh at each other, you mean.”

“Laughter is always the best medicine,” Adrien replied.

“We’ll be able to pry each other out of snowdrifts. It’ll be a blast, you watch.”

“As long as I get to hold your hand,” he said, reaching for her hand. “I’ll be fine.” Lifting her hand up to his lips, he pressed a kiss against her knuckles, then, with closed eyes, pressed a longer, firmer kiss to the back of her hand. 

Marinette felt her heart flutter then take off racing as Adrien opened his eyes and locked them on hers.

The door slid open and a disgruntled Nino wandered back in, flopping on the opposite chair. “Ugh, _managers_.”

Adrien snorted, dropping their hands until they rested on the seat between them. “Told you,” he said, leaving Marinette to wonder what Adrien had said.

Nino complained, “The idea of me coming back to Paris was so that I’d work _less_ , not roam around Europe doing gigs.”

“Must be so hard to be wanted,” Marinette said, lifting her free hand to her forehead dramatically.

“You’re a hot commodity right now,” Adrien said. “Paris’ golden boy.”

“ _You’r_ e Paris’ golden boy,” Nino replied, smirking. “Ever think of using that business degree you have? I could use a new manager.”

Adrien blinked at him. “What? Really?”

“Alya is _dying_ to move back to Paris permanently,” Nino said, winking at Marinette as she sat up straight with interest. “She misses her family and we both miss Marinette and our other friends like crazy and… honestly, while traveling the world is _awesome_ , we want to start putting down roots. My manager just wants to go bigger and better and all that crap. More money. More fame. I don’t mind doing traveling for a few months a year, but I _need_ a base. He doesn’t want to even discuss it. So, if you’re perfectly happy doing what you’re doing, then fine. But if you’re looking to switch it up a bit, I have a job waiting for you.”

Adrien swallowed and his hand felt strangely clammy in Marinette’s. “I don’t know anything about music management.”

“But you know a shit-ton about managing people. I saw you in Milan, dude. You can’t hide that from me. Any time any of the models or designers had a logistical problem, you were the first point of call. You solved more problems in five minutes than my manager has in the last six months and you did it without getting stressed at all, and then did your own walk on top.”

Marinette blinked at the men. She hadn’t heard anything at all about Milan, other than they had a great time.

“Marinette,” Nino said, seeing Marinette’s confusion. “This man is an absolute charmer. People just _do_ things for him and it doesn’t have anything to do with his father. It’s you, Adrien,” Nino continued, looking back to Adrien. “Calm and poised and an absolute people pleaser. You know people, the right people who can do what you need done, and if you don’t know them, you find out. You want to help and you love doing it. I want that. Models are performers too, music isn’t that different. You could learn.”

While Nino had been talking, Marinette had been nodding to herself, agreeing completely. She’d seen it with her parents, her employees, and staff at the restaurants they’d visited. The prisoner escape was a prime example. She’d figured out how to escape, he’d kept everyone in the room calm and organized them to help. He was kind and easy to talk to. People naturally gravitated to Adrien.

Like they had to…

She shook herself free of that thought as Adrien addressed her. “What do you think, Marinette?”

She looked between them and chose her words carefully. “You do go out of your way to help people and make sure things are running smoothly. Nino would be an excellent boss.”

Nino sat back, smug. “Damn right I would.”

Smiling, Marinette continued, “It would still have a decent amount of traveling, so you could continue your blogs, but ultimately it’d be your choice, Adrien.”

Adrien’s eyes darted from Nino to Marinette and back again. “Can I think about it?”

“Absolutely,” Nino replied, grinning at him. “No pressure.”

* * *

The cottage Nino had rented was gorgeous. Situated in the middle of a semi-circle of pines which separated this cottage from the others in the area, it boasted a single story building.  Two bedrooms on opposite sides of a large open living space with a cathedral roof. Both bedrooms had a small en-suite and their own tiny porch with a table and chair. A small kitchenette sat against a far wall of the living space with a fridge stocked with food for the next few days. A sunken lounge with fireplace and a bear-skin rug that made Nino waggle his eyebrows at Alya and made Marinette certain that for one night, at least, Adrien would be sleeping on her floor.

Perched on top of the kitchen bench was a basket full of wines and cheese.

Adrien and Nino hurried to get the heating sorted, while Alya and Marinette checked out the assortment of wine.

“This place is amazing,” Marinette said, opening a drawer to search for the wine opener.

“It’s even better in the sunlight,” Alya replied, fetching wineglasses. “The sunsets are magnificent. We’ll have to go up to the lookout tomorrow and watch it.”

“How’d you find it? It’s so out of the way, I wouldn’t have even thought to look.”

“Sometimes the out of the way places are the best,” Alya said. “You should try it more. Travel. See the world.”

“One day,” Marinette said. “I’m happy where I am right now.”

Alya opened the fridge and glanced inside. “Maman worked at a chef for a while at one of the restaurants in town.” She opened the small pantry next, looking inside. “We’d spend the winter holidays here,” she continued before she started to grumble. “There’s supposed to be crackers and bread and— ah! Here we go.”

Marinette poured the wine and handed it out while Alya assembled a small platter. Although they chatted and laughed together for a while, the four of them agreed not to stay up late, not with a day of skiing ahead of them. As Alya and Nino bade them goodnight and headed off to their room, Adrien went to use the bathroom first.

Marinette made sure everything was stored away and then headed into the bedroom she was going to use. Although she tried not to, her eyes were automatically drawn to the bathroom door, where she could hear the shower running.

The shower. He was naked in there. So close and yet so far. Images of him on the walk, wearing so little and covered in glitter, popped to the forefront of her mind.

Busying herself by unpacking her belongings into the small chest of drawers by the wall only took a few minutes and throughout the entire time, she was hyper-aware that Adrien was in the bathroom, scant feet from her. She touched the small, paper-wrapped package she’d brought with her from her store and for a brief moment, she wondered what he’d do if he opened the door and she was waiting for him, wearing it.

Scrunching up her nose, she grabbed the heavy quilt off the bed, wrapped herself up and stepped out the small patio balcony in the hope that the freezing night air would cool the rising heat in her blood.

 She couldn’t see much, but there was a wonderful quiet outside. A stillness and a freshness to the air that wasn’t in Paris. Brushing the snow away from the banister, she rested her elbows on it and stared up into the sky.

It wasn’t long before there was a knock on the door behind her and she flicked a glance over her shoulder.

Adrien, wearing a white long sleeved shirt and satin long pants and thick socks, cracked the door open a fraction. “Hey.”

“Hi. Don’t come out,” she blurted, turning away from the railing to shuffle-walk toward the door. “It’s freezing. I’ll come in.”

He opened the door when she got there, pulling her inside quickly to keep the heat escaping. “Love the blanket monster look.”

“They’re all the rage,” she said, un-burritoing herself from the blanket, gathering it into her arms so she could take it back to the bed.

“It was a cute look,” he said, smiling at her in a way that made her stomach cartwheel.

“Oh,” she responded, feeling caught in his gaze. The white shirt did little to hide the definition of his body and she had to resist the urge to touch him. Touching him might lead to other things, especially with the added tension of them being alone, in a bedroom. With a lovely, big, accommodating bed.

His eyes widened a fraction as he seemed to realize the same thing and he flicked his gaze away from hers. “So. Anyway. I just wanted to, ah, let you know the shower was free and say goodnight.”

“Okay.”

The blankets felt heavy in her arms as he made an odd jiggle-step toward her. His lips landed on the corner of her mouth, instead of her cheek.

Eyes wide, Adrien pulled back immediately. “Night, Marinette,” he said and retreated across the room before she could react or even bid him goodnight.

She lifted her fingers to touch the corner of her mouth were his lips had landed. So close.  Trying to quash a surge of disappointment, she dumped the blanket onto the bed and wondered if she should go after him. Puffing out a frustrated breath, she headed for the bathroom.

She had to be patient. She had to wait until he was ready and there was no forcing that. It was the only way to progress their relationship. He had to make that choice and he had to feel ready enough for it. There was too much at stake, for both of them.

The heat of the water didn’t help much, but the routine of getting ready for bed did. Dressing in her silk cami and shorts, she slipped into bed and switched off the lights.

Marinette lay on her back, staring up at the ceiling. The bed was toasty warm and she didn’t remember turning the electric blanket on. Adrien must’ve done it when he’d turned the heating on in here. He was such a sweetheart.

“Nope. No. This is utterly ridiculous,” Marinette said, getting up.  “We’re two consenting adults. We can share a bed.”

Gathering her robe, she stalked to the door, flinging it open, only to find Adrien standing there, poised to knock.

Marinette felt her eyes fling wide and she squeaked at him.

Adrien, eyes similarly wide, moved the upraised hand poised to knock back behind his head. “Marinette! I wanted to— I mean I know—” he cringed and screwed up his face as he stumbled over his words. “I’m really no good at this—I wanted to say—I wanted to wait until the perfect moment but I can’t and I need to—”

Head reeling, she watched him play tennis with his words and she knew he might never find the words he wanted. “Adrien?”

Throwing his shoulders back, he unscrunched his face and blurted, “I think I’ve fallen in love with you.”

Marinette felt like she was falling. “What?”

He bounced forward, too filled with nervous energy, and smacked a kiss on her lips.

It was over before she had a chance to react. Brief as it may have been, he didn’t move away. Back far enough to give her breathing room, but still within touching distance. Still within kissing distance, if she chose to rise up and taste.

The overflow of frustrated feelings seemed to have ebbed as he repeated in a calmer voice, “No. There’s no ‘think’. I _have_. I’ve fallen in love with you.”

Freefalling. Forever and ever, there was no end in sight and she didn’t care at all.

More sure of himself, he said, “I wanted this weekend to be perfect. We’re both hopeless romantics, I wanted to woo and dine you. I wanted to build up to it and it be perfect. But, it already _is_ perfect and I couldn’t wait anymore. I had to tell you how I felt before I burst.”

She puffed out a breath and licked her lips.

Adrien’s eyes zeroed in on the movement and he swallowed. “I need…” With great effort, he locked on her eyes again. “I need to know if it’s still welcome. If you still see potential. Because I’d really like to kiss you again and—”

“Please do.”

He wasted no time. One hand to her neck, the other to her hip, he practically pulled her out of the bedroom to connect their lips. Flush up against him, her body molded to match his until there was no space between them, only a swelling heat. Ladybugs dove into the very depths of her belly, a tingling of sensation that soon encompassed her.   

There was a desperation in his kiss that she met with an eagerness of her own. Teeth and tongue, mouths fused, Marinette fished his shirt and pulled him closer still. She slid one arm over his shoulder until her fingers spread at the nape of his neck.

He pawed at her back, stroking his hands up and down her spine, seemingly unsure of how he wanted to hold her, except that it had to be everywhere at once.

He pulled back, ragged panting and glazed eyes, and rested his lips against her forehead. Gasping breath and grasping fingers, she wanted more. Rising up on her toes didn’t quite allow her to reach his mouth, but she managed to land an open-mouthed kiss on his jaw. When he didn’t give his mouth back, she scraped her teeth on his throat and tugged at the back of his neck with her hand.

With a rasping chuckle, he ducked back down to kiss her again. Soft and slow and gentle, a soothing kiss.

She didn’t want soothing. She wanted hot and heavy.

His hands drifted from her back to cup her neck and he broke the kiss to press his lips to her forehead again. “You should sleep.”

“No,” she moaned.

“Marinette—”

“Stay with me,” she said, refusing to let him go. “Please.”

“I don’t think—”

“It’s a big bed and it’s warmer than the sofa. We’re adults, we can share a bed.”

Adrien made a strangled noise. “Oh. Oh. Right. I thought…”

Marinette laughed and stepped back into the room, pulling him with her. “I am well aware of what you thought.”

His smile was sheepish. “I didn’t mean to assume.”

Untying the knot on her robe, she let it slip from her shoulders and puddle onto the floor at her feet, leaving her in her silk cami and shorts. “Stop being so proper,” she purred, watching with pleasure as his eyes widened and dropped. “There are _other_ things we can do.”


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette knows the names of every snowdrift.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Adult content warning!

Snow _thwumped_ , casting a cloud of white and cold as a Marinette-sized hole appeared in the drift. She laughed, tangled in her skis and her poles, with snow all around her and tried to wriggle free.

Snow kicked up as Adrien slid to a stop close to the impact site. Popping his skis free of his boots with the end of the pole, he left them impaled in the ground as he hurried to help her. “That looked like it hurt.”

“Nope,” Marinette said, upside down. “I’m good. Just stuck.”

Dropping down, Adrien helped her free. “I’m beginning to think I should get a toboggan and drag you behind me.”

Marinette fell out of the hole she made and onto the snow. Kneeling, she grinned at him.  “ _Oooooh_.”

“Oooooh, what?” he responded, eyebrows raised as he offered her his hand to help her up.

With a wink, she replied, “Perfect viewing angle.”

Adrien burst into laughter, pulling her to her feet and straight into a kiss.

Marinette loved that this was them now. He’d been sneaking kisses from her all day. Some lingering, some little pecks, some to the back of her hand or the corner of her mouth, some even in front of Alya and Nino.

Alya had been more than elated to wake up and find Adrien not sleeping on the couch. Even more so when the pair of them had emerged from the room for breakfast. Broad grins from the pair, Nino asking for a high five and then drilling for information, even though both Adrien and Marinette said nothing happened.

Which was a little lie, but neither of them was going to give Alya the satisfaction.

Breaking the kiss, Adrien grinned at her. “C’mon. I’ll race you to the bottom.”

“You won’t win,” Marinette said, with a cheeky swipe at his bottom. “I’m totally going to turn into one of those cartoon snowballs, rolling down the hill and demolishing everything in my wake.”

“My lady,” he said, pulling her skis out of the drift for her. “You can snowball me over any time you like.”

“Oh, I’ll definitely sweep you off your feet.”

“You’d have to catch me first.”

She abandoned her skis and pounced on him instead, unbalancing them both and sending them tumbling into the snow. They wrestled and tussled, throwing the odd snowball at each other, until his laughter was so carefree and infections, she just had to kiss him.

The laughter changed to a moan and he gripped her hips to pull her down to him. He crept his hands up her back, kissing her fervently, then proceeded to dump snow down the back of her jacket.

She shrieked and curled away from the cold, effectively thrusting her chest at his face as she rolled away from him. Scrambling to her knees, she scooped up snow and threw it back at him, and they started an all-out snow brawl.

Later that day, they sat at a small table by the window in the ski lodge, having exhausted themselves and needing to thaw. Marinette and Adrien had ordered some hot drinks and stew to warm them up while they watched the skiers glide by in the hopes of spotting Alya and Nino.

Gloves resting on the table beside her, Marinette wrapped her hands around the mug of hot chocolate and blew across the top. “Love the snow. Hate the cold.”

“Great for snuggling.”

“I wouldn’t know. There’s a great lack of that happening.”

Adrien laughed. “Poor you. That reminds me, did you hear back from anyone from Monday’s gala?”

“Snuggling reminded you of _that_?” Marinette asked, raising her eyebrows at him. “How?”

“Well, we, ah, had nice hug? A _really_ nice hug.” He cringed and shook his head. “Okay, I got nothing, it just sort of popped into my head that I hadn’t asked.”

Marinette snorted and answered his question. “A few have responded, more than I anticipated, actually, which is a really pleasant surprise. Gabriel hasn’t responded yet but since I wasn’t striving for their particular attention, I’m not worried. What I have is more than enough to keep me busy for a while. I even have a meeting booked on Tuesday with Angelique.”

 “Oh that’s excellent news!”

“Yeah, I’m a bit nervous about it, but excited too.”

Adrien considered her, then turned his head to stare out the window. “Did you ever think about getting a manager? So you could concentrate on the design aspect of your brand?”

Marinette’s eyebrows shot up and she sat back, resting her mug on the table as she stared at him. “What are you saying?”

“Nino got me thinking, that’s all.”

Marinette studied him, waiting for him to expand his thoughts, but he stayed in the same position: elbow resting on the table to cup his chin while he stared out at the skiers outside. “Care to share?”

Adrien wrinkled his nose and pursed his lips. “Modelling and fashion are all I know. I have lots of skills and specific knowledge related to that. But music? I mean, I play piano, but I wouldn’t know the first thing about putting on a concert. Or organizing a recording session.”

“But you said you didn’t want to take over your father’s company.”

“My father’s, no,” Adrien said, turning his head to look at her. “But something I could help build? Something I could take real pride in being a part of? That sounds exciting.”

Marinette continued to stare at him. “I couldn’t _afford_ you. And what about traveling? I’m based in Paris and at this stage, I don’t plan to expand shops past Paris. My online presence is already strong. You couldn’t… Nino would be better for traveling.”

“But Paris has you, traveling doesn’t. I could buy in as a partner and—”

“Adrien,” Marinette interrupted, reaching forward to put her hand over his free one. “Let me stop you there. Not that I don’t appreciate you thinking about my business—I absolutely do—I don’t think it’s the right time. We’ve only just truly gotten together. Can you imagine what your father would think if we said we were an official couple _and_ going into business together? I mean, it appears really, _really_ sketchy.”

He laughed nervously. “Yeah. Yeah. That would be bad.” He sighed heavily. “I came on too strong, didn’t I?”

“I love that you’re thinking about us long term,” she replied, smiling at him. “And this is something we can talk about in the future. For now, we could talk about Nino’s offer, if you want.”

He turned his head to stare out the window. “I don’t think I’ll take it.”

Even though she felt disappointed, she tried to be supportive. “You could learn about the music industry. I think Nino took you not knowing the industry into account when he offered it to you.”

“Maybe. But if I took his offer, then I couldn’t help you in the future.”

Marinette lifted her hot chocolate and took a sip to give herself time to consider. “We’ve talked about this before,” she said. “What do you want to do, Adrien? Not me, not your father, you. You need to figure that out and then you grab hold of it with both hands and you don’t let anything take it away.”

Adrien stretched his hands across the table and grabbed onto both of hers. “Like that?”

Marinette laughed and winked at him. “Tonight, handsome boy.”

Adrien burst into a smile.

“There they are!” Alya called from the entrance to the lodge.

Adrien pulled his hands away and peered over his shoulder at the pair as Nino and Alya separated at the door. Nino headed for the counter, presumably to order food, while Alya bounced over toward them. “We missed you guys,” she said, sliding into the seat beside Marinette. “Thought you’d still be skiing.”

“Made acquaintance with one too many snowdrifts,” Marinette chirped.

Adrien smiled and lifted his mug. “Pretty sure she knows them all by name.”

* * *

Such a wonderful day. Stealing kisses in the snow, skiing and sledding and sitting close, shared hot chocolates and snuggling to get warm. Of snowmen and fireplaces and falling in snow. Laughter and fun and even more kisses.

She hadn’t felt this happy in such a long time.

The four of them had cooked dinner together and shared a few bottles of wine and now, as the day wound to a close, Marinette felt herself feeling mellow and relaxed.

Leaning against the kitchen counter beside Marinette, Alya asked, “So, are you going to tell me what happened last night?”

“Nope,” Marinette replied and sipped her wine.

Alya snorted. “You didn’t have the ‘I got laid’ glow about you.”

Marinette sighed, cursing the fact that her best friend knew her so well. “He’s such a gentleman. Lots of kissing, a bit of wandering hands and then he insisted we get some sleep. I half expected him to put a pillow between us.”

“Woe is you,” Alya replied, resting her hand on Marinette’s back comfortingly.

Marinette smiled at her friend. “It’s okay. I have a plan,” she said, glancing over at Adrien and Nino as they chatted near the fire.

“Ooh, I know that look. You go, girl,” Alya said with a wink. “We’ll make ourselves scarce, shall we?”

“Give me five minutes first.”

It didn’t take long to wriggle into her favorite piece of lingerie, lie on the bed and take a provocative photo of herself from the nose down, with a foil packet in her teeth. Unused to doing something like this, she had to take several before she got one that was in focus and displaying enough to be tantalizing. Taking a deep breath, she sent it to him.

She heard the beep as it arrived. She imagined a sharp intake of breath. Within seconds there was a knock on the door.

She rolled onto her side and propped her head up and posed. “Come in.”

Adrien opened the door enough so that he could slip into the room, then stopped, staring at her with wide eyes as he leaned his back against the closed door. “Wow.”

Marinette smiled. “Do you like it?” she asked, trying to squash the sudden spike of nerves. “It’s the favorite of my designs.” Bright red, the baby doll was a mixture of lace and mesh, designed to both tease and enhance, with a matching thong.

“It’s breathtaking,” he breathed, his eyes skimming over her until they came to rest on her face. “But, uh… we don’t… I mean, I’m not expecting—”

She drifted her hand over her hip, pleased when his eyes were dragged away from her face and to her hand. “I thought we could spend some time together.”

“In that?” Adrien visibly gulped. “Not that I’m complaining, but there won’t be much talking.”

“Well, I did keep teasing you with the promise of lingerie for nearly a month, it was only fair I delivered. I brought it with me, it’d be a shame to waste it.”

“It would,” Adrien said as he crossed over to the bed and she let her eyes drink him in. He slid in beside her and copied her position. Stretching out his legs, he touched his socked toes to her leg. “I really wasn’t expecting this. The plan was to kiss you, and I did that.”

“ _My_ plan,” she purred and touched his chest, “was that if you kissed me, I would seduce you.”

Adrien laughed and rested his hand on her hip. “Guess everything’s going to plan,” he said, leaning forward to kiss her.

Warm mouth lingering on hers. Sweet-scented breaths against her face. A taste of tongue as the kiss deepened. The touch of silk against her legs and a growing warmth from his hand. Mesh bunched beneath his hands, and then his fingers grazed against her bare behind. His palm drifted down her leg until he reached her knee, and he coaxed her leg up over his hip.

Marinette went one step further, pushing against him until he rolled onto his back, then rose from the bed to straddle his hips without breaking the kiss. Adrien stifled a moan and pushed upward until they were seated, with her on his lap. Wrapping his arms around her, he fusing their mouths together.

A plethora of kisses, excruciatingly slow and deep, before his hands flexed on her back and began to roam. A brush of fingers against her face, down her neck, stroking at the dip at the hollow of her throat. Drifting along her collarbone until they reached the spaghetti strap of her top, where he slipped his thumb beneath and pulled the strap down her arm. Breaking the kiss, his mouth followed the path of his hand with gentle butterfly kisses.

A growing warmth and wetness caused by shifting hips as Marinette let her hands wander across Adrien’s back and chest. As his mouth neared her shoulder, she lifted her chest in invitation, pleased when he kissed the swell of her breast instead.

She bunched up his shirt at the back and tugged, a silent request to remove it, one he quickly complied with. After his shirt was discarded, he went straight for the straps of her baby doll. A small kiss against the hollow of her throat while he deftly unhinged the bra section, then lifted the baby doll upward.

Marinette raised her hands and allowed him to unwrap her. Cloth fluttered against the bed in a discarded heap and she watched Adrien drink in the sight of her with a look of reverence on his face.

“You’re so beautiful,” he breathed, meeting her eyes before he lowered his head to worship her.

Gentle touches, dustings of breaths, pressing kisses and suckling skin, he touched and played and teased. Twisting them, he coaxed onto her back on the bed so he had access to her entire body.

Boy, did he use all that access. She hadn’t been aching like this, keenly waiting on his touch, for a long time.

Of all the things she expected during sex with Adrien, taking her thong off with his teeth had not been one of them. She laughed when he rose up, waggling his eyebrows at her with her thong still in his mouth.

“That had to be the dorkiest move I have ever seen.”

“Can’t always be the same _thong_ and dance,” he told her, winking and reached for the condom packet.

The absurdity sent her into a spiral of hysterical giggles that didn’t stop until he crawled back and settled over her. Elbows on either side of her, supporting his weight, he waited until she caught her breath. “Marinette,” he murmured. “We don’t have to. This is more than I ever expected for this weekend.”

She drifted the tips of her fingers up his bare back and her toes along the back of his calves, smiling at him. “I want you. I want this. I want _us_ , Adrien. I love you, and I haven’t been more certain of anything in a long time.”

“I love you, too,” he returned, pressing a tender kiss to her jaw.

He brought laughter into lovemaking, something that she’d never known she’d wanted but somehow sorely missed. He teased and tickled, kissed and licked, heightening arousal in ways she found impossible to comprehend.

He propelled them toward the edge, then kept them both dangling at the precipice, savoring each breathless moan, every beg, all while moving to the rhythm of imaginary music they both seemed to hear.

When she could no longer stand it, she reversed their positions and took command, rising above him to taunt and tease and tantalize, and finally flung them both over the edge and into pleasure.

* * *

Marinette would’ve liked the following morning’s wake up to be beautiful and special. Waking slowly to the first rays of sun, snuggling deep down in blankets and lulled back to sleep by Adrien’s heartbeat. Maybe being kissed awake for a sleepy morning rendezvous.

Instead, she got a shrieking Alya, dive-bombing onto the bed.

“Wake up! _Wakeupwakeupwakeup_!” she said, each ‘wake up’ accompanied by a bounce on the bed.

Marinette groaned. Adrien grumbled and tried to hide under the blanket.

“Marinette! It’s important. LOOK!”

Marinette pried open sleepy eyes, saw only brightness. “Alya,” she muttered, tucking the blankets up under her chin. “I’m naked.”

“I’ve seen you naked before. But looooook!” she repeated and waved her hand in front of Marinette’s face.

She tried to focus, really she did, but Alya was too excited and her waving hand was too quick. “Huh?”

“ _Nino asked me to marry him_!”

Marinette snapped awake. She sat up, lunging for Alya’s hand. “No way!”

Only Adrien’s quick reflexes, accompanied by a ‘whoa’ and blanket lunge kept them from both being exposed to Alya, but Marinette didn’t care. There, sparkling on Alya’s finger, was a large orange-sapphire, accented by two pear-shaped diamond rings, and surrounded by a halo of other diamonds.

“Oh my God,” Marinette said, cupping Alya’s hand so she could study the ring. “It’s gorgeous!”

“Suits you,” Adrien added. “Congrats you two.”

“Is it safe to come in?” Nino called from the hallway. “I’m all for a foursome, but it’s gotta be consensual.”

“We’re covered,” Adrien replied, lifting his fist up for Nino to bump as the cool cat himself strolled into the room, looking pleased with himself.

Blanket barely covering her, Marinette pulled Alya in for a hug. “I’m so excited for you both!” Squeezing shut her eyes, she tried to stop the tears of happiness.

“We need to celebrate,” Adrien said.

“After you two get dressed,” Nino said. “I love you both, but that is a little too much skin. Did we interrupt something?”

“Yeah, sleep,” Adrien replied.

Nino patted Adrien’s shoulder. “Sorry, dude. You were lucky I was able to contain her this long.”

Alya squeezed Marinette back tightly. “You’re so going to be my bride's maid, and design me the most perfect sexy wedding night lingerie.”

Marinette beamed. “Absolutely.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Seriously, these two. Once they commit, they're all in.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Heart of glass and glue

Her wonderful staff hadn’t burned her shop to the ground when Marinette returned to work on Monday. Everything was clean, the shelves were bursting with stock and Chelsea had left a sticky note on the register, “ _Welcome back! Hope you had fun on your trip! Enjoyed Adrien’s Instagram photos and I hope the baby doll worked!_ ”

A blush dusted her cheeks as she pried the note away and tucked it in her pocket. Adrien had gone a little crazy with the photos and posted an abundance to his Instagram about the cottage and the mountainside and skiing. Most selfies included the four of them, but Marinette had spotted a few of the two of them. Enough that speculation about who she was and what she meant to him was already rife in his comments.

Not that she worried about repercussions, she just hoped that Adrien would get to talk to his father before Gabriel found out through other means. Adrien had promised he’d do it first this morning since he had a breakfast meeting with Gabriel. While Marinette had suggested that she be there for moral support, Adrien had refused, saying this was something he had to do on his own, and promising he’d call her afterward.

He hadn’t yet, and that made her concerned but she tried to put it out of her mind and threw herself into her work.

When he hadn’t contacted her by the time she sat down for her lunch break, she picked up her phone and sent him a quick message just to say she was thinking of him. Sighing, she grabbed a pencil and started work on some new designs.

“Ahh, Marinette?” Veroniqué called, lifting up the curtain which partitioned the shop and Marinette’s office. “There’s someone— hey!”

A woman pushed past Veroniqué and into Marinette’s office. Black hair with a streak of red slicked back in a tight bun, she looked down her nose at Marinette. In her hands, she held a manila folder and a tablet. “You are Marinette Dupain-Cheng?”

Placing her pen down on her desk, she stood. “Yes, I am. What can I do for you?”

“I am Nathalie Sancoeur, Gabriel Agreste’s personal assistant.”

Frowning, Marinette nodded at Veroniqué. “It’s fine, thank you, Veroniqué.”

Nathalie turned her steely gaze from Veroniqué to Marinette. “As you may know, Gabriel is looking to expand into lingerie and Adrien believes that your brand would be an adequate starting point.”

Marinette felt the hairs on the back of her neck rise. “Adrien believes?”

Nathalie brandished the manila folder and thumped on the Marinette’s desk. “The offer is five hundred thousand Euro for the business as well as exclusive copyright of your designs, plus a contracted position in the leadership team of the new lingerie department based in Milan. With lucrative pay, for the next five years, after which your contract can be renegotiated. Our starting offer is—”

Marinette interjected, “My brand isn’t for sale.”

Nathalie raised her eyebrow. “Everything is for sale, for the right price. Also, please note the clause which instructs you to never to see or speak to Adrien again.”

Marinette blinked. “I _beg_ your pardon?”

“Sign it,” Nathalie said. “Or do you think your quaint shop could survive the full force of Gabriel. Believe me, this is a far better option.”

Marinette looked down at the paper. “You’re threatening my business?”

“I’m glad we understand each other. It’s a good offer, I suggest that you take it.”

The words on the page seemed to swim. She thumped down back down on the chair.

Nathalie offered her a pen. “Five hundred thousand. That would set your aging parents up for a life of leisure. Pay off any debts. If you’re smart, it will set you up for life. Or Gabriel can alienate your business from suppliers. Fabric, production lines, you name it. He will run your business into the ground, then when you’re at your worst, he’ll buy it from you for a pittance and still startup his lingerie department. We’re offering you a chance to be a help, not a hindrance.”

Her business. Her employees. Her designs and her dreams.  “Adrien—”

“Adrien,” Nathalie said haughtily, “will always do what is right for the company. He signed a contract and he continues to choose to honor it and you are a mere distraction.”

“No, that’s not right, he—”

“Do you think you’re really any different than the other girls?” Nathalie replied, impassive to the whole situation. “Adrien Agreste is, ultimately, not interested in you. He loves the thrill of the chase and has a fixation on young designers. As usual, I’m left to clean up his mess. You’re not the first to be enamored and you certainly won’t be the last. These were his instructions, Mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng. He _authorized_ this. He’s offering to pay you compensation for your trouble and even give you a job at Gabriel. All he wants is for you to never bother him again.”

It was like a stab to the chest, especially with how her last relationship ended.  Adrien knew. He knew everything about it and he was going to do it to her too? The timing of this felt so contrived. They’d spent a wonderful weekend together, and now she was to be tossed away like garbage. And he wanted to take her business too?

He hadn’t rung. He hadn’t called her. He promised that he would and he hadn’t. He’d gone to see his father and now his father’s company was offering this. It all seemed too real.

She’d been set up and played for a fool. He’d been the front man for Gabriel, casing out her business and keeping her distracted. He was going to take everything she worked for, knowing how much she wanted it.

Her heart screamed at her, the old hurt broken open and weeping and she didn’t know if she could live through that pain again. It took all her concentration to keep standing and hold onto the only thing that was protecting her. Anger. She slammed her hand down on the piece of shit they wanted her to sign and closed her fist around it, scrunching the paper up. “Then you need to tell him to have the balls to come and do it himself.”

“Marinette?” Veroniqué called from the other room. “Is everything alright?”

She had to get rid of Nathalie while she could still stand. “Get out,” she ground out through gritted teeth. “Don’t come back.”

“You have twenty-four hours to reconsider,” Nathalie said. “I’ll leave the contract so that you can discuss it with a lawyer. Regardless of your decision, Adrien would prefer not to have any contact with you again.”

She held it together until she was sure that person was out of her shop, then braced herself over her desk. Head hanging, she took deep, controlled breaths to try and calm herself. The scrunched up document taunted her, lying discarded on the table. She wanted to rip it to shreds. She wanted to scream and rant and collapse in a heap. She wanted to go out and get drunk.

She couldn’t do any of that. Not until she had answers.

“Marinette? Are you okay?”

Marinette managed to nod.

“Is there anything I can do?”

Tears leaked down over her cheeks and dripped onto the papers on her desk. “I need to be alone.”

Veroniqué looked stricken. “Of course.”

Once alone, Marinette grabbed her phone and hit Adrien’s number. A jumble of feelings, she swung from terror to anger and back again as she waited for him to answer.

“ _T_ _he person you are trying to reach is unavailable, please try again later_.”

Grabbing a tissue, she dabbed her eyes. She’d heard that message before. Last time, he’d been on a plane, traveling for work.

He hadn’t mentioned that and he would’ve, if he’d known. If not to her, then to Nino, because the boys made plans for lunch today. _Nino_ …

If Adrien was scouting for lingerie businesses, only after the thrill of the chase, and didn’t care for her at all, why did he include Nino in the ploy? If Adrien never wanted to see her again, then he’d never have to see _Nino_ again too and somehow Marinette doubted that. Not after all that effort.

Something wasn’t right and that something was enough to help her keep some clarity.

Grabbing her coat, she stuffed Gabriel’s papers into her purse and headed toward the door. “Veroniqué, if I’m not back before you shift ends, please close up. Put a note on the door saying there was an emergency.”

“Are you okay?” Veroniqué asked.

“I will be,” Marinette replied and headed outside. As she walked toward the metro, she called Nino. “Nino—”

“Babe,” Nino said jovially. “I am all for you bumping uglies with the dude, but we made lunch plans. Let him get dressed.”

She hissed out a shocked breath. He wasn’t with Nino. Maybe… “Adrien’s not with me.”

“Oh?” Nino replied, surprised. “Really? Do you know where he is? He’s not answering.”

“I can’t get hold of him either.”

“Huh. Well. Um… you okay? You sound weird.”

“I... I just had a visit from Gabriel’s personal assistant.”

“Oh. _Shit_.”

The words spilled out of her. “She told me that Adrien was only after the chase and now that he’s had me, it was over, he didn’t want to have anything to do with me. I was practically cornered and blindsided and she made me feel like some cheap whore only after money. She even offered me five hundred thousand Euros to get out of Adrien’s life and threatened my business and now I can’t get hold of Adrien and what if it’s true? What’ll I do? I can’t do this again, Nino. There was a non-disclosure agreement and a fucking contract and everything! It’s wrong, it’s so wrong because if it’s right, then he did this to you too.”

“Marinette, love, take a breath,” Nino soothed. “Where are you?”

“I’m heading for the metro. I’m going to Adrien’s place.”

“Alya will meet you. Just breathe, we’ll get to the bottom of this.”

Once aboard the metro, she scoured Adrien’s Instagram for any clues.

All the pictures that included her were still there and there were a few scheduled posts which had been released since the last time she’d checked. One of the shots he’d taken was of her wrapped up in a blanket by the fire, her nose red from cold. He’d put a little heart in the corner.

More things not making sense.

Marinette didn’t know if that made it better or worse.

Adrien didn’t answer his door. She stared at the green door, willing it to open. Hoping maybe he was in the bathroom. Or asleep. Or maybe the bell was broken. She didn’t know.

Thumping on the door didn’t work either, but it roused Plagg. She could hear the cat wailing on the other side of the door. A sound that was loud enough to disturb Adrien’s neighbors, it seemed, as the door next to Adrien’s opened.

“Okay, okay, noisy cat, it’s not even feeding time yet— oh,” the woman said as he caught sight of Marinette. “Salut. Can I help you?”

Marinette tried to smile and it didn’t work well. “I’m looking for Adrien Agreste.”

The woman lifted her finger as she studied Marinette. “You’re that girl, the one from his Instagram photos. Marjorie.”

“Marinette. Yes, that’s me.”

The woman’s face turned sympathetic. “I’m sorry, dear. He and his assistant left early this morning. He asked me to take care of his cat for a few days.”

“His assistant?” Adrien had never mentioned an assistant before. She was fairly certain he didn’t have one.

What did that mean?

The neighbor nodded. “Tall woman. Long brown hair. Think he called her Lola or Lily or something like that. Do you want to leave a message?”

Marinette forced herself to keep a level tone. “No. Thank you.”

Adrien had had time to take care of his cat. But not call her. He had an assistant that he’d never mentioned before. At all. His father’s personal assistant had come to pay her off and try and make her never speak to Adrien again, but Adrien had texted her constantly last night, right up until this morning, when he’d met with his father.

Every second she couldn’t find him, made her feel like it was all true. He didn’t want her. He was only after her business and her body.

Just like Jacquez.

She didn’t want that thought. Hated that thought. Wanted to remember the good things about Adrien. Wanted to defer her judgment until she’d talked to him. But the recent bad kept swirling around in her brain, multiplying until it was shouting at her. Until it was all she could hear and there was nothing else.

Walking without any true purpose, she made her way back downstairs, only to almost crash into Alya as she barreled upward.

“Marinette!” Alya blurted, wrapping her arms around Marinette. “I’m here! What’s going on?”

Marinette stared at Alya, trying to make sense of all of this. But nothing was making sense. Nothing at all.

She burst into tears. “It happened again.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *goes into hiding*
> 
> You can come and scream at me at my [tumblr](http://kryallaorchid.tumblr.com) if you want


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fishbowl of flowers

“Okay. Thanks, Max. I owe you one.”

Emotionally exhausted, Marinette looked up as Nino hung up, watching as he sat back and ran his hand through his hair. “What did he say?”

Nino’s hand reached the back of his neck and he flopped his head back, staring at the ceiling. “Adrien’s phone’s GPS is registering at the Manor.”

Marinette swallowed hard. “Gabriel is hardly going to let me in there.”

“Max’s gonna do his thing though,” Nino promised, using an imaginary keyboard with his fingers. “See if he can’t track something else. He’s a magician at this sort of stuff. He’ll call back if he comes up with anything.” Nino dropped his head and looked at Marinette. “It could be something as simple as he misplaced his phone.”

“Maybe,” Marinette replied, skeptical. “The timing is _incredibly_ suspicious, though.”

“I hear that.” Nino glanced at his phone, then picked it up to check something. “Hopefully he’ll pop up on Discord or Skype, we can corner him.”

Cupping her hands around her coffee, Marinette nodded. Her mind was a turmoil of emotions, second-guesses and self-loathing. Crying on Alya had done her good and allowed an emotional release, but Adrien’s continued silence brought back an age of insecurities. The same thoughts kept circling, kept shouting at her, constantly at the forefront of her mind.

He’d tried to buy into her business and she said no, so he was going to take it, however he could. He didn’t love her. He didn’t want her. It had all been a trick.

Try as she might, she couldn’t see anything else.

“Adrien’s a good guy, Marinette,” Nino said, stretching his hand across the table, palm up. “That hasn’t changed in all these years.”

Marinette accepted his offer of friendship, placing her hand in his. His hand felt warm and comforting, like the man himself.

“He’s not Jacquez,” Nino said, running his thumb across the back of her hand.

She wanted to believe him. This was Nino, her Nino, Alya’s Nino. Nino never steered her wrong.

“Okay,” Alya announced slipping into the seat between Nino and Marinette. “Word is Gabriel has two photoshoots scheduled this week. One’s on the stairs of Rue Foyatier, the other’s in Italy. Which, if Adrien packed a bag, Italy is a better guess.”

Nino nodded. “Seems more likely.”

“Also,” Alya continued with a toss of her hair. “Our friend social media isn’t producing any sightings of him at the shoot at Foyatier.”

“Yet,” Marinette muttered.

Glancing at her, Alya added her hand to the pile. “What do you want to do?”

With her free hand, Marinette lifted her coffee cup to her mouth to give herself time to consider an answer. Nothing came to mind though and she was left awkward sipping until she had to sigh and lower the cup. “I don’t know.”

“You don’t have to do anything,” Nino said. “He’s bound to try and get in contact with you soon. Let’s say, for speculation’s sake, that if for some weird reason he’s lost his phone, he can still call your shop to get hold of you.”

“Exactly,” Alya said, snapping the fingers of her free hand before she pointed at Nino. “Maybe we should camp out there.”

Marinette muttered, “I wish I had your confidence.”

“Lovely lady,” Nino said, squeezing her hand. “I know your head is all mucked up right now. We don’t know what’s going on, and everything looks bad. Have a bit of faith in him. For me.”

Marinette sighed. “Nino… you didn’t hear her. She was… emotionless. Very insistent. She didn’t care whether or not I believed her, she was stating facts.”

Nino shook his head. “You don’t see the way Adrien looks at you,” he countered. “Dude _loves_ you.”

Marinette pressed her lips together and was saved from answering by her phone. With Alya and Nino both watching expectantly, Marinette lifted it. “It’s Veroniqué. I left her watching the boutique.” She thumbed the answer and then held it to her ear. “Salut Veroniqué, I’m sorry about all this, I’m on my way back—”

“Marinette,” Veroniqué breathed, sounding awed. “Someone sent you roses. There’s twenty-four of them and they are _gorgeous_.”

Marinette sat up straight. “Is there a card?”

“There is. It’s in a sealed envelope.  Do you want me to open it?”

“Ahhh… no. No. I’ll be back soon.”

As Marinette hung up, Alya asked, “What’s going on?”

Marinette stared at her phone. “Someone sent me flowers,” she murmured, bewildered.

Nino and Alya shared a look and Nino said, “I bet they’re from Adrien.”

“Let’s go find out,” Alya said and rose from her chair.

It was hard for Marinette to get motivated by flowers, but she followed her friends to Alya’s car and slid into the backseat. Silence filled the cabin that Alya lessened by turning some music.

The flowers sat on the counter of the shop in all their glory. Two dozen red roses, the flowers forming a dome above the fishbowl vase. Marinette’s jaw dropped when she saw them and something akin to hope stirred in her chest.

“Holy _sheeeeeet_ ,” Nino sang as he caught sight of the bouquet. “That would’ve cost a small fortune.”

Unable to take her eyes off the roses, Marinette crossed the room and reached for the card. Running her thumb beneath the flap, she opened it and read the card. Adrien’s handwriting, normally immaculate, had been reduced to a choppy and hurried scrawl.

 

_Marinette,_

_So sorry! Can’t find my phone. At airport, Father sprung urgent Milan trip on me. Something legal involving Jacquez, I don’t have more info yet._

_Will resync new phone tonight, don’t be surprised by random number. Breakfast went okay – will explain. In a rush. Apologize to Nino please!_

_I love you._

_Adrien._

Marinette frowned. She shuffled and read the note over again. She flipped it over to check the back, then flipped back to read a third time.

Alya, responding to Marinette’s blank expression, asked, “Is it bad?”

Marinette blinked at her, then held out the card to for Alya read, with Nino crowding in to take a look.

He couldn’t find his phone, but Max said Adrien’s phone was at the Manor. The flowers had come from the florist at the airport, their sticker was on the back. There was no evidence of what Nathalie proclaimed to be Adrien’s feelings in the card. The scrawl felt exactly like something he would do.

He’d had breakfast with his father, and his father then rushed him away with something urgent and sent his personal assistant to—

“There! See! I said he loved you,” Nino announced.

—make some bogus offer and— “How many times?”

Nino balked. “I’m not sure I want to answer that.”

Alya, the more observant, asked, “How many times what, Marinette?”

“How many times have they done this?” Marinette stared at the roses, her mind whirling as pieces of the puzzle fell in place. “The last girl— his father kicked him out—then she stopped—what if— oh my God. That’s—”

“You’re not making any sense,” Nino said.

“And I doubted _him_ when I should’ve been—Gah, I am _so_ stupid!”

“Marinette?” Alya asked.

Marinette spun and strode for the door.

“Where are you going?” Nino called.

“To Agreste Manor,” Marinette said, shoving her door so hard it rattled. “Gabriel and I need to have a chat.”

Nino and Alya looked at each other, then hurried after Marinette.

It took a good twenty minutes by car to get to the Agreste Manor. Twenty minutes of Marinette stewing and the anger she held at the situation growing ever stronger. She tried to divert her thoughts, to think of a way to politely and civilly speak to him but came up completely empty as to how to approach him. By the time Alya pulled her car up at the gates, Marinette had a rough idea of what she wanted to say but no idea how to say it, especially without swearing.

Of course, Nathalie had to make entry difficult and refused to even open the gate. “I’m sorry. Gabriel isn’t taking visitors right now.”

Marinette borrowed a page from Nathalie’s book and kept her voice bland. “If you like, I can take this straight to the media. I’ve even brought a journalist with me.”

Alya shot Marinette a sharp look and then backed her up. “Alya Césaire, investigative reporter.”

A moment later, the gate buzzed, signaling it was open. “Thank you,” Marinette replied, slipping through the gap before the gate had fully open.

It had been years since she’d been inside the manor itself, but not much had changed in the foyer area apart from the updated full-length portrait of Gabriel and Adrien positioned above the landing in the middle.

It was here that Gabriel waited for her. Elevated, a position of power, waiting to oversee her request.

Marinette was having none of that. She marched straight up those stairs to join him on the landing. Once there, she found a small fraction of courtesy to hold out her hand and say, “I’m Marinette Dupain-Cheng.”

Gabriel arched an eyebrow at her but unclasped his hand from behind his back to take hers in greeting. “Marinette. Adrien has mentioned you.”

“I should hope so,” Marinette said and cast a glance down the stairs to where Nathalie stood, then across to Alya and Nino who hovered by the door. “Especially since your assistant visited me this morning with a very intriguing offer.”

Gabriel retracted his hand, returning it to behind his back. “Ahh. I see. So this dramatic entrance is to accept the offer?”

In her younger years, Gabriel the fashion designer had been an idol to Marinette. The man himself was rather lacking. “This ‘dramatic entrance’ is to tell you to go shove it.”

Gabriel tilted his head at Marinette. “I beg your pardon?”

All the anger, frustration and hopelessness of the day came tumbling out. “How could you do that to him? How many girls have you run off by bribing or scaring the crap out of them? Do you even know what you’re doing to Adrien’s mentality?”

Gabriel’s expression was as cold as stone.

Marinette pulled the contract out of her purse and tore it in half. “I can’t believe this crap. I am not going to sell you my business. I am not going to join Gabriel so you have me under your thumb. And I am certainly not going to _go away_! I will be with Adrien for as long as he wants me to be and he is going to be so angry when he finds—”

“Your terms are accepted,” Gabriel replied.

Derailed, Marinette took a step back. “What? What you mean ‘my terms’? There are no terms—”

“As long as Adrien wants you, I will not interfere.”

Marinette narrowed her eyes. “What is that supposed to mean?”

“If he is as committed to this relationship as you appear to be,” Gabriel stated, matter-of-fact. “Then it shouldn’t matter what I mean.”

Marinette shot a startled look down at Alya and Nino. “Was this a test?”

“Of course it was,” Gabriel replied, ignoring the low whistle from Nino. “I had to make certain what you were after. Adrien the man, or my empire.”

“That’s real low, man,” Nino muttered.

“You can go shove your empire.”

The corner of Gabriel’s lips crinkled upward. “And that is why you passed. There have been so many people trying to steal my empire and attempting to use my son to do that. His mother and I wanted to protect him from people who would use him.”

Her brain worked overtime. A test? Would Gabriel test Adrien too? Blood drained from her face. “Who was the girl you sent with him?”

A muscle on Gabriel’s cheek twitched.

Marinette pressed, “Who is Lily or Lola or—”

“Lila,” Nathalie supplied. “She is his ex-girlfriend and—” She trailed off, mollified by a glare from Gabriel.

Marinette’s eyes snapped to Gabriel as her brain conjured up the worst possible scenario. Lila, who’d apparently already accepted money from Gabriel and ordered to stay away, now with a chance to be close to him? “Did you send Lila to Milan in order to _seduce_ Adrien?”

“It was necessary to—”

“How dare you?” Marinette snarled and clenched her hands into fists. “You don’t toy with people’s emotions like that! He _loved_ her! And before you got to her, she loved him! He spends all that time healing and now you’re just going to say it's okay?”

“That’s why it’s a good test. Don’t you want to know if he’s trustworthy?”

Marinette stared at him unable to fathom the tripe that just fell out of the man’s mouth.  “He’s your son. Don’t you think you’re betraying _his_ trust? What are you going to if, for argument's sake, he falls for it? According to you, she’s already proved herself unsuitable. Will you pay her off again? Break his heart again? That’s disgusting behavior.” Stepping away from him, Marinette turned and walked down the stairs toward Alya and Nino. She had to get out of here before she did something she’d really regret. Like punching Gabriel in the nose. “You should be ashamed of yourself.”

The man said nothing as Alya and Nino followed her out.

“Marinette?” Alya scooting forward to take Marinette’s hand as they walked back toward her car. “Are you okay?”

“No idea,” Marinette said, truthfully. “I’ll let you know.”

“Do you want to go to Milan?” Nino asked. “I’ll book us—”

“No,” Marinette said. “I have a meeting first thing tomorrow that I can’t miss.”

“I could go,” Nino said.

“We don’t even know _where_ in Milan he is, love,” Alya said. “And Gabby in there isn’t going to tell us. We’d still have to wait for him to contact us.”

Marinette sighed. “Plus, I think… I think that would send the wrong message. I mean… I know today has been royally screwed up, but if everything Gabriel said was true, testing Adrien’s commitment is the least of my worries. Adrien _knows_. He knows what I went through. He would never.”

Alya nodded. “He wouldn’t.”

Marinette tried to smile. “I need to be more worried about how I’m going to tell him all of this. Before Gabriel twists it into something else.”


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eroded trust

Marinette spent the rest of the day trying to decide what to tell Adrien and how, and by the time she closed up shop, she still didn’t have any clue.

This kind of information should be told to him in person, a face-to-face conversation that would definitely need physical contact and hugs. But she couldn’t travel to Milan as she had a meeting in the morning with regards to last week’s Gala. And she didn’t think waiting for Adrien to return would be appropriate either. If it were her, she’d want to know as soon as possible.

She didn’t know how long he would be in Milan. If it was a day, then maybe it would be okay to wait until he returned. If it was longer, which she felt was more likely, then she needed to tell him as soon as she could.

There were other concerns too. If Lila had indeed been sent to try to seduce Adrien—and Marinette didn’t tell him as soon as she could—it could conceivably be interpreted as manipulation on its own. That _she_ was testing him. But if she did tell him, he’d have to deal with it while he was in Milan. And maybe he’d think she didn’t trust him enough to refuse Lila’s advances. If Lila hadn’t been sent for that reason, then conceivably Marinette could get in trouble for jumping to conclusions and accused of not trusting him.

Added to that, she didn’t know how Gabriel would continue to manipulate the situation. What if he told Adrien _she’d_ tried to extort him for money? She mightn’t get a chance to even talk to him again, to explain.

She had no idea what to do. Every solution she came up with seemed to feel worse than the last one. So many ‘ifs’ and ‘thens’ and not enough certainties.  

She hated that she was thrust into this situation, but she knew, no matter what, she had to get to Adrien first and tell him what was going on. The only question was how.

“I don’t envy this decision, honey,” Sabine had said over speaker when Marinette called her for advice. “It feels like a no-win situation all around. There will be no right time to tell him, no matter what, he will be hurt. But he’s currently in a situation his father has manipulated to occur. I’d want to know.”

“I wouldn’t,” Tom added. “He’s working away from home. No support system in place. He’s on his own. Something like this would be better if he’s somewhere comfortable and familiar.”

“He’s been on his own for a long time, Papa,” Marinette said.

“All the more reason he _shouldn’t_ be now.”

“Can’t you go there?” Sabine asked.

“Not until tomorrow night,” Marinette replied. “And I’d have to fly out the next morning.”

Tom said, “Do that then.”

“But, what if he thinks I’m manipulating him?” she asked. “By waiting? What if Lila puts the moves on him tonight and I didn’t tell him.”

“You trust him, don’t you?” Tom asked.

“Yes, I do. But if I don’t tell him, what if he thinks _I_ was testing him?”

Tom hummed. “I see your point.”

“I can’t lie to him, Papa,” Marinette said. “To wait, then I’d have to pretend when he calls tonight that’s nothing’s wrong and I’m a dreadful liar. He’s going to know.”

“I wish there was a way to make this easier on you,” Sabine said, saddened.

“Damned if you do, damned if you don’t,” Tom said. “But I think Adrien will understand, whatever you decide to do.”

“I hope so.”

In a simple sports bra and boy shorts, Marinette sat on her bed, surrounded by her designs, and worked on her presentation for her meeting tomorrow at Angelique. Tikki wove in and out of Marinette’s legs, chittering, playing and begging for food.

Going for a run hadn’t helped her thought processes as she’d hoped. Even now, she was unsettled and found it difficult to concentrate. Time seemed to stretch as she waited for Adrien to call, dreading the moment that he would but also desperately wanting to hear his voice.

When the phone finally rang, she scrambled for it. Seeing the unknown number flashing on her screen, she answered with a tentative, “Bonjour.”

“Salut, my treasure,” Adrien responded.

“Adrien,” she breathed.

“I’m sorry about the abruptness of the trip,” he said. “Apparently they’ve been preparing all weekend for it and I was too busy ‘cavorting’ to answer the phone. My father’s words, not mine.”

Marinette tilted her head and tucked her legs up near her chest so she could hug them with one arm while she talked. “Did you get in trouble?”

“Lil’ bit. Completely worth it.”

Now the moment was here, she wanted to delay it as much as possible. If they kept talking about his father, she’d blurt it out. “Why are you in Milan?”

He chortled. “Oh, you’ll love this,” he chirped. “One of Gabriel’s legal departments is here. We’re investigating Jacquez, since he was based out of Milan mostly, and building case against him. There’s a team of designers pouring through every design he’s ever submitted for Gabriel and figuring out what he stole and what he didn’t. We’re putting together a report for the police to help prosecute him.”

Marinette felt her jaw drop. “Really?”

“Absolutely. Some of the stuff he was up to is unbelievable. There are even signs he might’ve been embezzling.”

“Wow. That’s wonderful.”

“Wonderful?” Adrien asked, perplexed.

A beat before she realized what she’d said. “I mean, wonderful that you have evidence.”

“Ahh. It does mean that I’ll be away from Paris for a while. Not entirely sure how long, but I’ll definitely come back for the weekend.”

Marinette swallowed hard. “Oh,” she said, with a hint of a voice crack. “Can I come see you?”

“Can’t get enough of me?” he teased.

“Something like that.”

“Um… I mean, I would love you too, but I’m really very busy overseeing this case and it won’t be much fun for you. Is something wrong?” His voice changed, turning concerned and Marinette realized she’d forgotten to use a flirty tone.

“No.”

“Nervous about tomorrow?”

He was sweet for remembering and she glanced around at all the planning she was doing. Even as distracted as she was, she knew her stuff. “No. No, I think I got this.”

“I can help, if you need to practice or something.”

“No, it’s fine. Really. Tired. It was a big weekend.”

“Oh,” he said, disappointed. “Do you want to go to bed?”

“No,” she replied. She needed to shape up, or he was going to suspect something. “No, it’s okay.”

He sounded uncertain. “Um, I don’t mind if you want to sleep. I know tomorrow is an important day for you. I’m going out with a few people from Gabriel soon, and, er, for the sake of transparency, one of them is an ex-girlfriend.”

“I know.” Unbidden, the words slipped out and she couldn’t take them back.

“You know,” Adrien responded flatly.

Marinette clapped a hand over her mouth. She hadn’t meant to say anything, but the whole thing with his father was on the tip of her tongue and she felt like she was going to burst.  “Oh. I…um…”

“Okay, something’s going on,” Adrien said. “You sound weird, you didn’t ask me how it went with my father, you didn’t want to talk about your meeting tomorrow, and you knew my ex was in Milan. Did my father come and talk to you? I know he can be intimidating but—”

“You _knew_ he was going to come to see me?” Marinette blurted.

“So he did,” Adrien muttered and sighed. “I asked him to wait until I got back. I’m sorry that he—”

That feeling of betrayal that had haunted her all day rose again. “Did you know about the rest? Did you authorize it? Did you threaten my—”

Adrien’s voice cracked like a whip as it burst from him. “ _Threaten_? Who threatened you? Did my father?”

Marinette swallowed the harsh words she felt building. She had to do this properly. He _didn’t_ know, no matter what her heart screamed at her. He _hadn’t_ known and he _didn’t_ know and she needed to remember that.

“Marinette?” Adrien blurted at her sudden silence. “Are you okay? What _happened_?”

“Shit.” She’d done this wrong. She’d done it so wrong. She should’ve practiced or something. She was no good at keeping secrets of this magnitude. Not when she knew it would hurt someone she loved.

“My love, you’re scaring me.”

She swallowed hard. “Do you have a few minutes to Skype? This needs to be face-to-face.”

He sounded skeptical. “Um… yeah, sure. Let me load up the laptop. Knowing my father… I’m… not going to like this conversation, am I?”

“No,” she mourned. “Probably not.”

“Ominous.”

Lifting her laptop up, she rested it on a pillow ahead of her. “If it helps, I’m in my sports bra.”

“ _Oooh_ ,” he said and the attempt to tease fell flat. “Definitely helps.”

She heard a rustled and a few clicks, and then her laptop flashed with his call sign on Skype. Hanging up, she clicked on the answer call and waited. “Salut,” she said when his image flashed on the screen.

He sat at a table with what looked to be a hotel room behind him. A plain white shirt and a blue tie, his hair was slightly windswept and he looked tired and worried, but he perked up when he saw her. “Well. You weren’t kidding. Gorgeous.”

She smiled weakly.

He caught the smile and frowned. Leaning toward the screen, he murmured, “Tell me. Please.”

“I… er… I had a visit from Nathalie today.”

Adrien raised his eyebrows at her. “Nathalie, my father’s assistant? That Nathalie?”

“Yeah. She...” Marinette scrunched up her face, shut her eyes and blurted, “Look, there’s really no easy way to tell you this. It’s going to hurt no matter what and I can’t—I can’t think of a way to do this easily. I just—I don’t want to hurt you, Adrien, I really don’t but this is going to.”

“Marin—”

She had to do it like tearing off a Band-Aid, quick and without hesitation. “Your father tried to bribe me into never seeing you again.”

“He _what_?”

Keeping face scrunched up and wondering why she’d thought this was a good idea to do it over Skype instead of the phone, she rushed, “He offered to buy my business and my brand from me and give me a job at Gabriel as well as five hundred thousand Euros. He said it was payment from you for—erm—services.”

“ _What_?”

“Nathalie said that’d been your job. To case me out. She led me to believe… that… that my business was all you were after and now you were done.”

Adrien breathed, “ _No_.”

Marinette covered her face with her hands. “I doubted you. For a while I did. You didn’t ring and then she threw that at me, and it was all going wrong and I couldn’t reach you. I went to your apartment and you weren’t there and your neighbor said you’d left and I was thinking, ‘well, he had time to look after Plagg and not call me and where does that leave me on his list of priorities?’ and then the flowers arrived and I felt so stupid.”

“Oh my God.”

“I went and I confronted him and he told me it was all a test. To see if I wanted you or the empire and I told him where to shove it and that I wasn’t going anywhere, but, Adrien, he sent your ex-girlfriend with you with instructions to—and I think he’s testing you too, and I think—I think— Adrien…” Her voice caught in her throat and she couldn’t speak anymore.

Adrien’s voice broke. “You think he paid her off to break up with me in the first place.”

“Maybe?” she squeaked and peeked through her fingers.

Adrien was gone from the screen but she could see him pacing. His hands were buried in his hair and he muttered to himself. From this distance, she couldn’t make out the words.

“Adrien?” Marinette called. “I’m sorry. I was going to come visit—I didn’t want—I screwed this up badly and—”

Adrien shook his head and held out a hand to her as he paced. “Give me a second.”

Marinette felt her eyes watering from the pain etched onto his features, and she buried her face in her knees. Tikki chittered at her, crawling through the gap in her legs to peer up and Marinette reached down to pat her.

“Do you doubt me now?” Adrien asked, his voice low and soft.

Marinette lifted her head to see Adrien back close to the screen, leaning towards it with both hands on the table beside the computer. “No. No, I don’t doubt you.”

“Good. I’m glad. Because I would never do that to you.”

“I know. I’m sorry, it all happened so fast and—”

“No, I don’t blame you, I know what my father is like. He likes to hit people where it hurts.” Adrien sat back down with a thump that echoed through the speakers. “This is messed up.”

“I’m so sorry,” she said mournfully. “I was going to wait but I’m not a very good actor.”

“No, I’m glad you told me,” Adrien said. “It explains a few things.” He dropped his eyes and nodded. “More than a few things. Honestly, I’m not even surprised. Lila’s been…” he huffed and scrubbed a hand over his face. “Very attentive and fake flirty. Like she used to be before. I could barely get away to send you flowers. ” He snorted. “Having had the privilege of  _your_ flirting, I can see just how fake she was. I can’t believe I fell for it. Twenty-one-year-old me was dumb.”

Marinette blinked, having not expected that turn of events. “Oh.”

“There was a little voice that always wondered if she was bought. Now I know.” He sat back and slouched on his chair. “Father wasn’t happy when I told him about you. But he also wasn’t surprised. I guess the Instagram photos weren’t exactly subtle.”

“I guess not.”

“He said he wanted to meet you and I said I’d introduce you when I got back. I _never_ thought he’d go that far.” He sighed again. “Marinette, I need to know, is there a physical contract?”

“Yes.”

“Can you scan it and email to me?”

She smiled meekly. “I kind of tore it up.”

He flashed a smile. “Did you keep the pieces? Or did you throw them in his face?”

“I have them. I’ll do my best.”

“Thank you. Can you explain more about what happened?”

“Adrien, I don’t—”

“Please. I need to hear it.”

She told him everything. The conversations she could remember, the words Gabriel used. She told him about Alya and Nino helping out and how their confidence in Adrien kept her spirits going until the flowers arrived. She told him about the meeting with Gabriel and how horrified she was by Gabriel’s actions and she tried to do it all as calm a tone she could manage.

He didn’t ask questions, allowing her to talk until she’d worked through everything he needed to hear. Adrien was silent when she finished. Head hanging, eyes downcast and shoulders slumped and Marinette felt her heart breaking for him.

She reached out and touched the screen. “Are you okay?”

“No,” he replied, raising his head just enough to meet her eyes. “But I will be. I just… I need to get my head around all this, that’s all. Figure out what I’m going to do.”

She drummed her fingers against her knee. “May I come and see you tomorrow? I’d have to be back in Paris Wednesday morning, but I could spend the night. We could talk about it?”

He perked up a little. “Can you bring that number you had on display at the gala last week? I’m dying to see that on you.”

Marinette smiled. “I think I can manage that.”

“That would be—” Adrien broke off, turning his head to listen to something the microphone on the laptop couldn’t make out. “Speak of the devil.”

“What?”

He turned back to her and lowered his voice. “Lila’s outside. She said my father’s on her cell and wants to talk to me.”

Marinette inhaled sharply. “Adrien—”

“Do me a favor. Turn the camera off on your end and stay quiet. I’ll see what she wants.”

She didn’t like that idea at all. It felt like an intrusion of privacy. “Are you sure?”

“Positive,” Adrien replied and tilted the computer so Marinette could see more of the room, and both the front door and the bed. “Can you see?”

“Yes. I’ll turn my mic off too.”

“Okay,” Adrien replied, draping what looked to be some sort of shirt over the top of the computer while leaving the webcam exposed. “Yeah, that looks natural,” he muttered. “Right. Here goes.”

Marinette reached forward, turning off her camera and her microphone and watched Adrien walked toward the door. He checked the peephole, then opened the door.

Lila, from what Marinette could make out, was wearing a hotel bathrobe and held something in her hand. Probably a phone, but it was too fuzzy to make out clearly. She was tall, taller than Marinette, almost level with Adrien’s height, with long brown hair and she was stunning. It was easy to see why Adrien had fallen for her initially.

“I’m sorry,” Lila said, and giggled as she pushed into the room. “I was in the shower and your father rang, looking for you. I don’t know why he’d call me instead of your phone.”

“I seem to have misplaced it,” Adrien said, following Lila back into the room and Marinette saw the cautious glance at the computer.

Lila held out the phone. “Here you go.”

“Thanks,” Adrien replied, then frowned as Lila sat on the end of his bed.

“Oh, don’t mind me,” she said and flopped her hand at him. “I never leave my phone with anyone. It’s probably regarding the case anyway.”

Adrien turned his back on Lila, pulling a face at the computer, and hence at Marinette, before he lifted the cell to his ear. “Father… All day? I apologize, I seem to have misplaced my phone and I haven’t set up a new one yet… you could’ve called me at the office if it were that urgent…”

Lila started to play with the ties of her robe, idly watching as Adrien started to pace.

Marinette ground her teeth together, wondering at the game. Lila seemed far too comfortable there, and Marinette wondered what she was wearing beneath the robe, and if there would be an ‘accident’.

Adrien must have realized and that was why he’d asked Marinette to stay on the line, as an emotional backup.

“Marinette did?” Adrien blurted, and his gaze flicked to the computer. “Father, with respect, I asked you to wait until— _what_?”

Marinette felt her heart sink. So, she’d been right, Gabriel was going to try and frame her. She was incredibly lucky that she’d gotten to Adrien first.

“No...no, I don’t believe that for a moment. There’s no way she’s in league with Jacquez…”

The sinking heart turned to anger and frustration. She knew Adrien would never believe that nonsense, but how dare Gabriel use that pain against her. Against him.

“Marinette Dupain-Cheng?” Lila asked.

Adrien turned his head to Lila, “One moment please, Father,” he said and asked Lila, “Do you know her?”

“Her name popped up a lot in the designs I was looking at earlier.”

“Because he stole my entire portfolio,” Marinette ground out.

Lila swung the tie of her robe, nonchalantly. “Almost like they were working together.”

“Or he stole a lot from her,” Adrien snapped, then went back to talking to his father. “Father, that’s not real evidence… because I know he has a grudge against her and… No. That can’t be right. Because she’s one of the ones who reported—”

Marinette’s hands crept up to cover her mouth. She was only getting part of the conversation, but it was enough for all sorts of horrible thoughts to form in her head.

Adrien lifted his free hand up to the back of his head and rolled his shoulders back as he tilted his head back to stare at the roof. “She didn’t… She _wouldn’t_. I approached her! There was no conniving or… because I wanted _Nino’s_ number! It just happened! She didn’t— evidence lies, Father, and I’m not at all sure we should be trusting Jacquez’s word right now.”

Tears pooled in Marinette’s eyes as she watched Gabriel try to break all the trust Adrien had in her in one go. While she had a small idea what Gabriel was saying, but she could see the evidence of the words in Adrien’s stance and in his voice.

“Okay. Okay. Yeah. I’ll… think about it... Well, of course I’m going to ask her— why not? … Seriously? … that’s not how communication works. No. No, I won’t,” Adrien snapped and hung up.

“Are you alright?” Lila asked, standing to retrieve her phone from him.

Adrien moved away from her and toward the computer. Leaning over it, he braced his hands on the table. “I didn’t think he’d go that far,” he muttered.

“Adrien,” Marinette whispered and touched the screen, desperately wanting to comfort him.

“Adrien?” Lila asked. “What’s wrong?”

Adrien scrunched up his face. “You should go, Lila.”

“Don’t be silly,” she said, and slid her hand up Adrien’s back until it reached his shoulder.

Adrien’s eyes widened exponentially as Lila pressed her chest against his back and he ducked away immediately.

“Get off him,” Marinette snarled, clenching her hands into fists. She itched to hit the microphone and announce herself. She could see where this was going, what they’d planned and she hated that she wasn’t there to shield him from it. He’d call for help if he needed it and she had to trust he knew what he was doing.

“I’m not good company right now,” Adrien said, backing for the door.

“You’re obviously upset,” Lila said. “Did you get some bad news?”

“It’s really none of your business,” Adrien said, standing at the small hallway to the door.

Lila turned and sat against the table. “I can help.”

Adrien instantly averted his gaze from her. “No. You can’t.”

“Talk to me.”

“Not a chance,” he retorted. “Please leave.”

“We used to be so good together,” Lila said, pushing away from the table and approached Adrien. “The games we used play—”

“The games _you_ used to play,” Adrien muttered and took another step back.

“I’m trying to help, Adrien,” she crooned. “And believe me, I _remember_ how much sex helps you.”

Marinette covered her mouth with her hand. Her head reeled from the turmoil her emotions were going through. From anger, to sadness, to pain, it was a lot all at once, then to add something like this on top of it.

“How long’s it been for you?” she asked. “Since you felt the sweet touch of a woman? I bet your _aching_ to—”

“I don’t want you anymore,” Adrien said. “Get out.”

Lila clicked her tongue. “Your loss,” she said. “But if you change your mind, you know where I’ll be. I wonder how long you’ll last this time before you crawl back to me.”

“You broke up with me,” Adrien snarled and opened the door. “There was no crawling anywhere.”

Lila appeared to touch him as she sauntered past and out of his room, but Marinette couldn’t tell for sure. “I seem to remember something different.”

He shut the door as quickly as it would allow, then stood there, bracing against the door. Silence in Adrien’s room, save for his strained breathing. Unable to bear it, Marinette covered her face in her hands and muffled a sob.

For a time, there was nothing else, then footsteps echoed across the room and Marinette tried to pull herself together.

“Marinette?” Adrien called softly as he uncovered the computer and sat down before it. He braced his elbows on the table and rested his head in his hands. “You there? I’m so sorry you had to hear that.”

She reached forward and flicked the microphone and screen back on. “Did you… have you… with her?”

Adrien swallowed heavily and nodded. “Twice since we broke up. But not for years. I… I got lonely and she was there and… at the time, I thought I could convince her to come back but I always felt used afterward, so after the second time, I didn’t allow it to happen again. She’s tried a few times since then, but I never… I don’t love her anymore. I haven’t for a long time. I love you.”

Marinette nodded and wiped a tear away from her cheek.

“I’m sorry.”

Marinette shook her head and gave him a watery smile. “Don’t be. It’s in the past, and I know mine isn’t perfect. Look at my ex. We all make mistakes.” She sniffled and concentrated on his emotional state and not her feelings. “Are you okay? You sounded angry when you were talking to your father.”

Adrien’s shoulders hunched and Marinette didn’t like the way he avoided eye contact.  “Basically he said you’d come to see him today, and that in the meeting you’d let slip that you had a connection with Jacquez. Something which Jacquez supposedly confirmed.”

“He didn’t try to say that I was extorting him?”

He sat back on his chair and tilted his head back until stared at the ceiling. “Well, there was an undercurrent of that. But no. He can’t come out and say that, because he knows I’ll try and talk to you and he doesn’t have you under his thumb. He’ll tread carefully, small lies that can be put down to a misunderstanding and… and I hate that I know this! I’ve seen him do it before, but never to me!”

“Adrien, I’m so sorry—”

“I think this has been building for a while.” He sighed. “I need to see this Jacquez thing through, then I’m leaving the company.”

“Oh.”

“You were right about me needing to find myself,” he murmured. “I can’t do in Gabriel. Not with him trying to manipulate me.”

Marinette’s cell rang, and Marinette glanced at the screen, frowning when she saw who was calling. “It’s… your number.”

“God, it’s not going to stop, is it?” Adrien groaned. “On speaker, please. I suspect he thinks we haven’t talked and is on damage control. Can you pretend that you think it’s me?”

Marinette nodded and answered with a, “Salut Adrien, I’ve been trying to—”

“Mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng,” Gabriel said in his haughty voice.

“Monsieur Agreste,” Marinette said, copying his tone. “Why are you calling on Adrien’s phone?”

“It would be in your best interest not to discuss the terms of your contract with Adrien.”

Adrien’s head reared back in surprise.

Marinette held up her hand to calm Adrien. “You mean when I said that I wasn’t going anywhere and would be with Adrien for as long as he wanted me to be. The one where you said you wouldn’t interfere, as long as he chose me back? That contract? We never signed anything and I don’t answer to you.”

“It would be in Adrien’s best interests if he never discovers that we spoke. I am willing to double the initial monetary offer for you to keep your silence, as well as allowing your relationship to cont—”

“No,” Marinette replied. “Trust is a foundation of any relationship and I will not allow you to tear down ours by eroding his trust in me.”

“Especially now,” Adrien added. “When my trust for you is completely gone.”

Gabriel sucked in a breath. “Adrien?”

“This is a new low, Father,” Adrien scolded. “I always believed that I, as your son, would at least be exempt from your schemes. Guess not.”

The fear in Gabriel’s voice was evident. “Adrien, this is a simple misunderstanding.”

“I quit. I’ll finish the Jacquez case and then I’m done working for you. I’m out. You no longer have any control over me. Marinette, please hang up.”

Marinette hesitated and Adrien implored with a, “Please.”

She clicked the button and lowered the phone, staring at him. “Adrien, are you—”

Adrien’s movements were stuttered and ungainly as he reached for the laptop. “Give me a minute,” he murmured—his voice cracking at several points—then muted himself. He turned the laptop so it faced the window and left Marinette staring at the sheer curtains.

Marinette could easily guess why he’d done that.  Sighing heavily, she flopped back on her pillows. Covering her face with her hands, she allowed herself a few tears. It had been a stressful day for all concerned and she was allowed to be emotionally drained.

Tikki squeaked indignantly as Marinette shifted her legs and almost squashed her little friend. “Oh, Tikki,” she murmured as she collected her. “Sorry, little one, it’s way past your bedtime.” Rising from the bed, Marinette carted Tikki back to her hut, then went back to clean up all her designs.

Adrien hadn’t come back to the screen when she’d finished, so she sprawled out on her bed on her stomach to use her phone to check flights to Milan.

Movement drew her attention to the computer as the video seemed to bump and the screen shifted. Glancing at the screen, she saw his hand resting on the keyboard.

Stretching out, she left her hand on the keyboard as well. She knew he was hurting and had no idea how to help, but the simple act that both their hands were doing the same thing, in view of each other, helped her feel connected to him. Joined by video and imagination and a shared love.

When he still didn’t speak, she tried to coax him back completely. “There’s a few flights tomorrow. I’ll be on the first one after my meeting... if you still want me to come?”

His hand lifted from the across to activate the sound, then returned to its original position. “Yes, please,” he murmured.

“I’ll talk to the girls, see if we can switch some shifts, but I’ll have to fly back on Wednesday.”

“If I’m lucky, I’ll fly back with you.”

“Do you want to talk?”

Adrien sighed deeply. “Not right now. Tomorrow.”

“If I bring the lingerie set with me, there might not be any talking,” she said in an attempt to lighten his mood.

“I can handle that,” he replied.

“I love you,” she said.

He turned the screen and let her get a look at the messed-up hair and rumpled clothes and red-eyes so he could tell her, “I love you, too. See you tomorrow.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When your skin literally crawls as you write a scene, you know it's going to have an impact.


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Snarky snark.

Clutching her carry-on suitcase and laptop case, Marinette waited for the line to start moving. She tried not to be impatient, but the disembarking line from the plane was so slow.

People inched forward, only to be pushed back by people at the front adding themselves into the line, or people collecting their bagging from the overhead compartments.

Sighing, she took her phone out of her handbag to check if Adrien had responded to her ‘ _Touched down in Milan_ ’ text. Honestly, she didn’t expect much, since he’d been mostly uncommunicative all day. Not that she blamed him at all. He’d texted his hotel name and address, as well as inquired about her flight details, but that was it.

She hoped he was okay. She hoped he was coping. She’d never had her life upturned like this, she didn’t know what she could do, except perhaps hug him and never let go.

She didn’t think he’d mind that option.

The line shuffled forward a lot more quickly now that the crush of people ahead had disembarked and Marinette moved with it. She’d only been to Milan once before, so didn’t know the area well. She knew enough Italian to be able to read the signs directing her toward the taxi rank, once she got through security and she had her phone ready for translations.

She was lucky that their flight was the only one which landed at the time, and the lines were quick and easy. Before long, she headed out the gates and into the waiting room. Lifting her eyes to the signs above her head, she tried to determine which way she needed to go.  She had to find a taxi and make her way across the city to—

“Marinette!”

Her head snapped left at the sound of her name being called and she almost dropped her bags in surprise to see Adrien sitting one of the seats in the waiting room. He didn’t look like he’d slept at all last night. Tired and emotionally exhausted, but still smiling at her like she was the brightest treasure in all the world.

Rising from his seat, he opened his arms and Marinette rushed into them. He clutched her tightly, as though she was the only thing anchoring him to this world and if she let go, he might float away, never to be seen again.

“I wasn’t expecting you,” she breathed.

Stooping, he buried his face in her neck. “I needed you. I didn’t want to wait.”

“I’m here,” she murmured, pressing herself against him to offer him as much comfort as she could in the crowded airport.

Adrien touched her chin to coax her head up, then dropped his head down to kiss her. A bittersweet lingering against her lips, caste when compared with the other kisses he’d given her, this one felt like a reconnection and a desperate bid for normalcy.

After a time, Adrien reluctantly released her. Reaching for the handle on her suitcase, he took it from her, then entwined their hands. “C’mon,” he murmured. “Let’s get out of here.”

Whether he’d hired the car, or it was a company one, Marinette didn’t know, but she was glad they didn’t have to catch a taxi. It wouldn’t have been very conducive for conversation at all.

He got in first. “How’d the meeting go?” he asked as they drove out of the car park.

“It was good,” she said, allowing some of the excitement she’d been feeling about the meeting to creep into her voice. “They _loved_ my plus-sized designs and are very interested in purchasing the rights to some of them. We’ve also signed a contract that allows me to be a reseller of their merchandise.”

“Excellent,” Adrien said, flashing her a smile. “I’m so happy for you.”

“I have a meeting with Coquettish on Thursday,” she continued. “Chelsea said she’d work overtime for me tomorrow, so I don’t have to be back in Paris until tomorrow night. But I do have to do a little bit of work while I’m here.”

Adrien nodded. “I thought you might. That’s okay, I have work to do too.”

“How are you?”

Adrien heaved in a breath and released it slowly. “Million Euro question there,” he muttered. “I’m… not sure everything’s really sunk in yet. I kinda threw myself into the Jacquez stuff, trying to get that done with as quickly as possible. Father’s… he’s tried ringing a few times today, but I’ve basically ignored him.” He lowered his voice. “See how he likes it.”

“Oh.”

“What would I say to him anyway?” Adrien said and Marinette sensed he wasn’t really asking for an answer. “Thanks for being so controlling and manipulative, you tried to bribe the woman I loved? Thanks for making me question every relationship I’ve had, and given me a fucking complex about trusting people with my heart? It was so hard opening up to you, letting you in, and he… he _made_ me like this. You watch, it’ll be under some twisted notion that he’s protecting me. What’d he think was going to happen when I turned thirty? Would he have me sign another contract? Or throw some woman he approved of at me and expected me to… God, what if he _handpicked_ a partner for me? Some wealthy old lady so he could add her fortune to his, or some designer he wanted to leave the company to, or even like an amalgamation wedding, tying two great fashion houses together!”

Marinette’s eyes couldn’t get any bigger. “An old lady?”

“I don’t know!” he said, clearly frustrated.

“You would make an excellent trophy husband.”

He flicked a glance at her, derailed by the teasing tone. “What?” he squeaked.

“Covered in glitter and mostly naked as I put you on my mantelpiece? Yes please.”

Adrien snorted. “Only if you took me down and polished me daily.”

“Just daily? _Hourly_. I’d take special care in polishing your… unmentionables… so they’re nice and shiny.”

Adrien laughed and relaxed in his seat, instead of being stiff and angry. He reached for her hand, picking it up off her knee so he could kiss her fingers. “Thank you. I needed that.”

She smiled. “I know this is hard,” she said. “I can’t even fathom what you’re going through. I’m here for you. Whatever you need.”

“A spit polish, apparently,” he replied.

“Don’t get ahead of yourself,” Marinette returned. “You’ll want me in my sexy lingerie before that happens.”

“You’re only here five minutes and already I feel immensely better,” Adrien said. “What did I do to deserve such an angel?”

“You walked into her lingerie shop,” Marinette said. “And swept her off her feet.”

“Best decision of my life.”

Adrien was staying at a five-star hotel, the best of the best. Prestige oozed out of every surface, even the doorman felt upper class as he greeted Adrien by name. Marinette turned in a slow circle as she tried to take in the immense, gold themed foyer. “Wow.”

Adrien watched her with a smile on his face. “Have you ever been to Milan before?”

“Once, a long time ago, with my Grandma. Never anywhere like this though. This is impressive. It reeks prestige and money. Even Nino never stays anywhere like this. Wow.”

He steered her toward the elevators. “We can go out to dinner if you like. Or have it in the restaurant here. Or even room service. Whatever you want.”

She flashed him a smile. “Depends on whether or not you want me to get dressed.”

“Ooh,” he said, standing by her side as they waited for the elevator. “Decisions. However will I chose?”

The door slid open with an announcing ding and there, standing in the cabin playing on her phone was Lila.

Adrien took an instinctive step back, the movement making Lila’s head lift. “There you are! I’ve been looking everywhere for you.”

Expression fled from Adrien’s face and Marinette frowned.

“I need to talk to you,” Lila said and reached forward to grab Adrien’s wrist, yanking him into the elevator with her.

“I don’t want to talk to you,” Adrien snapped, moving as far away as he could considering the vise-grip on his arm.

Marinette stepped forward, only to be barred entry by Lila, who stretched her arm across the door. “Could you take the next one, please?” Lila said, too sweetly to be sincere.

Marinette narrowed her eyes and stuck her foot in the door so it wouldn’t close. Did Lila realize who she was or was she pretending not to know?

Still smiling in that sickeningly sweet way, Lila said, “My boyfriend and I need to have a chat. We got into a fight and now he’s all pouty and I need to make it up to him.” She winked, obviously seeking some sort of solidarity between girls. “You know how it is.”

“Wow,” Marinette said and looked past Lila at Adrien. “She’s really something, isn’t she?”

Lila reared her head back. “I beg your—”

“Sure,” Marinette chirped. “I’ll catch the next one. I’ll take my boyfriend with me though.”

Lila’s mouth fell open. “What?”

Wrenching his arm free, Adrien ducked out from behind Lila and exited the lift, taking Marinette’s hand.

“How can she not know who I am?” Marinette asked Adrien.

“She’s never really been interested in my life. Just my money.” Adrien shrugged. “Plus she’s blocked on all my social media.”

“Good choice. I would appreciate it if you stopped hitting on him,” Marinette continued. “It was very clear you were making him uncomfortable, or can’t you read body language?”

A sly look filled Lila’s eyes. “Then you should tell him to stop lapping it up. He was all over me last night. He simply exhausted me.”

Marinette laughed at Lila’s attempt to make her jealous. “I’m sure it was terribly exhausting being thrown out of his room. You don’t know Adrien very well at all, do you? That seduction attempt was laughable. Try punning, it might get you somewhere.” She glanced at Adrien again. “I really want to know if it was her plan or his.”

“So do I,” Adrien said. “Tell me, Lila, before we broke up, how much money did he offer you?”

Lila’s hands flopped to her sides and she paled. “I... I don’t know what you’re—”

“Was it worth it?” Adrien pressed. “Did you get everything you always wanted?”

“I would never take”—Lila lifted her hand and extended it toward him—“Adrien, what we have is special and—”

“I _know_ , Lila,” Adrien told her. “No more lies. What we _had_ was special, and you ruined it. You made a choice that—”

“I _didn’t_ have a choice,” Lila replied, in a suddenly watery voice. “No one says no to Gabriel.”

“Marinette did,” Adrien replied, blase.

“I was twenty-one!” Lila all but wailed. “It was a lot of money!”

“You must think I’m really stupid,” Adrien replied and took a step back, tugging Marinette with him so she would remove her foot from the door. “You took his money back then, and still tried to string me along with offers of sex when what I really wanted was intimacy, and now I bet you’re _still_ after his money. How much did he offer this time?”

“He would never let us be more—I was with you the only way he allowed and—”

The other elevator door opened, and Adrien nodded it at, indicating Marinette should head there.

“Adrien,” Lila said, reaching for him again. “Please, let me explain.”

“Don’t ever talk to me again,” he said and stepped into the elevator behind Marinette.

The doors closed without Lila chasing them inside and Adrien slumped against the wall. “That was surprisingly cathartic.”

“I hope she’ll leave you alone now,” Marinette muttered. “Do you think we were too hard on her?”

“No,” Adrien replied. “If anything, she was let off easy.”

“Your father would be hard to say no to,” Marinette mentioned. “Especially—”

“I don’t care. She made her choice,” Adrien replied and reached for Marinette’s hand. “Let’s not allow Lila to ruin our time together.”

The elevator dinged for their floor and Marinette followed Adrien down the long hallway toward his room. Once inside, he took her coat from her and hung it on the wall. “Do you want some wine?” he asked.

“Wine would be perfect,” she said, wheeling her suitcase further into the room. Dropping the laptop case on the floor beside a cupboard, she lifted her suitcase onto the bench beside his open one and unzipped it.

“Are we doing lingerie already?” Adrien teased, hanging up his own coat. “I was hoping to wine and dine you first.”

Marinette laughed as she pulled out a carefully packed box of bakery goodies her parents had sent with her. Lifting it up to show him, she said, “Present from my parents.” She carted the box over to the bed and opened it, pleased to discover that most of them survived the trip.

“Ooh macarons,” Adrien said and pulled one out of the box. “Your parents are amazing.”

“I’ll tell you a secret,” Marinette said, smiling as Adrien bit into the macaroon eagerly. Placing one hand on his shoulder, she rose up on her toes to whisper in his ear, “I’m already wearing lingerie.”

Adrien choked on the macaron.

And then had the most delightful time unwrapping her to discover for himself.

* * *

 

“Ahh, Monsieur Agreste, you carry a lot of tension in your shoulders.”

Adrien snorted. “You don’t say.”

With a giggle, Marinette ran her fingers down his back until she reached the small of it, where she spread them out to massage across to his hips. Digging her fingers in, she applied pressure with them up his back until she reached his shoulders, then used her thumbs to gently manipulate the muscles there. “That’s about my limit of corny things masseuses say in movies.”

“Shame, you were doing so well.”

“Probably because I’m naked and sitting on your ass.”

“It has that perk. If you like, I can roll over and we can talk about the first thing that comes up.”

Marinette snorted. “Down boy.” Dipping down, she kissed his shoulder. “You promised me you’d talk.”

Adrien sighed and turned his head so he was face first in the pillow. Marinette sat back and continued her gentle administration on his back while she waited for him to gather his thoughts.

Eventually, he lifted up, propping himself up on his elbows. “I don’t know what to say.”

“Start with how you’re feeling.”

“I’m feeling nakedness against my butt and I want to explore it.”

“Flirt,” she teased. “Okay. Try this… ‘I feel angry. Hurt. Sad. Frustrated—’”

“Hopeful.”

Marinette blinked, pausing for a moment. “Okay,” she said and ran her fingers along his spine. “Why?”

“My whole life I’ve done things the way he wanted. I went into modeling, I got a business degree, I became a partner, and managed a large chunk of his people. I became the face of Gabriel. I devoted everything to his line of work, helping out where I could. Now… that’s gone. Completely gone. Because there’s no way I will trust him again. And I feel _good_ about it. I can do what I want, when I want. If I want to spend the day in bed, Nathalie isn’t going to text me and tell me I was supposed to be somewhere, representing him because he can’t leave the house.”

She worked on his shoulders again, gentle rubs and circular pressure from her fingers to keep him talking. “Go on.”

“Last time… I was still reeling from him kicking me out, from _her_ , and having to do everything on my own. I’m established. I have a home. I have savings. I have options. I have you. It’s… liberating. I don’t have to care what he does anymore.”

She didn’t say anything.

“But I do, don’t I?” Adrien asked in a small voice. “I still care about him.”

She used the ball of her palm to rub a particularly tight spot. “He’s your father. That isn’t going to change. It’s okay to still care about and love him, in spite of what happened.”

“I don’t want to forgive him.”

“I didn’t say you had to,” Marinette soothed. “He hurt you a great deal. But I think you should talk to him. Even if it’s to tell him how you feel.”

“Or tell him to get out of my life.”

“Well, you could do that too. Your father seems incredibly crafty though. I feel like you need to have a plan. Or at least an idea of what you want to say to him.”

“He never leaves the house,” Adrien said, sounding confident. “As long as I never go back there again and never answer the phone when he calls, he won’t be able to talk to me.”

“You realise,” Marinette said. “Now you’ve said that, he’s going to be outside the door.”

Adrien turned his head toward the door, then twisted his torso so he could peer at her. “If it knocked just then…”

“I know, right?”

“Creepy. Can I roll over yet?”

Smiling, Marinette asked, “Are you feeling suitably relaxed? Or do you want your front rubbed as well?”

He turned back to his propped up on his elbows position. “Definitely rubbage.”

“What do you think you’ll do?”

“Before or after the rubbage?”

She smacked his back lightly. “You know what I meant.”

“I don’t know,” he murmured. “I’m going to take some time to think about it, though. I have savings, I can afford it.” His head dropped. “Marinette?”

“Yes?”

“You are going to stand by me, aren’t you?”

She knew it was the pain of what had occurred with Lila talking and that even if he knew in his heart, he just needed to hear her say it. “Of course,” she said and let her hands slip around beneath him to hug his back to her chest.

“Even if it takes me a while to find my feet?”

“Even then. There’s nowhere I’d rather be.”

In a quick move, he flipped them so that she was on her back and he could snuggle into her chest. “Good, cause I like you where you are.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PLEASE READ IMPORTANT INFO
> 
> NaNo starts tomorrow, and I’ve made a decision I know a lot of people won’t like.  
> I am absolutely loving writing Driven to Distraction. I haven’t had this much fun writing in a long time (not that my original novels aren’t fun, but they’re also a lot more stressful).  
> It’s been asked by multiple people, why I don’t make this into an actual novel. Its Miraculous Ladybug in name only. The character are older, they have different experiences, there are no powers. I could easily take what I’ve done so far, rename the characters, write backgrounds into the story, add a buttload of new content and interactions and stuff and then see if I could publish it as a romance novel. More flirting, more smut, who wouldn’t like that?  
> Ethically, should I? Why not? Its been done so many times before, by so many accomplished authors. Plus this story isn’t finished, there will be heaps of content you won’t have seen. I would rewrite most and change a lot of details, and use this as a draft (one of the details being the contract would probably vanish, and you could see how that would affect things right from the beginning).  
> So, I’m stopping this series to use NaNo and see if I can work this into something I could sell. This one will be the last chapter I post… or maybe the next one cause it’s the Gabriel confrontation and that was fun. Don’t know. I could be convinced to post that one, I suppose :D  
> Even if I finish this, the written novel will be different, because I thought of another arc which hasn’t been included in this at all. But, as this story is a baseline, it would have to be deleted eventually. Which is why I left you with a dollop of fluff.  
> Thank you for all your support and comments while reading this. It was an incredible experience. Please feel free to annoy me on my [tumblr](http://kryallaorchid.tumblr.com).


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Smackdown

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As promised.

Marinette ran her hands over her chest and stomach to smooth down the little black dress. Low cut for cleavage, it fitted her like a second skin all the way down to the middle of her thighs and she always felt incredible while wearing it. She’d brought to Milan with her in case Adrien felt like going out for dinner. Sliding her stockinged feet into her heels, she turned around to see Adrien watching her. “What?”

“You’re gorgeous. And I’m regretting not ordering room service.”

Heat colored her cheek, but she returned. “Think about how much fun you’ll have taking it off me when we get back.”

“Do I really have to wait?” he whined.

“I am dessert, darling,” she crooned and waggled a finger at him. “You have to have the main course first.”

“If you spread your legs a little, I could get a taste of dessert right now.”

Her thighs tingled in anticipation. “I suppose this is not the right time to tell you I’m not wearing underwear.”

“Fuck it. We’re never leaving the room.” He laughed. “And you aaaaaare. Because you teased me with them, too.”

Marinette giggled. “Okay. You got me.”

“You’re just going to tease me all dinner, aren’t you?”

“That’s the plan.”

“Awesome,” Adrien said and dropped a kiss on her neck before holding out her coat. “I’m looking forward to it.”

He’d booked them a table at one of the most glamorous and expensive restaurants in Milan, under the idea that he’d spend as much of his father’s money as he could before he left. It was a little vindictive, but Marinette felt it was also a bit therapeutic for him too. She would never truly be comfortable in such an expensive place, but it was nice to experience it.

Rich lighting, beautiful gold and red tones, and every table immaculate, it felt like a place straight out of movies. There was even an in-house string quartet playing.

Adrien left his hand on the small of her back as he guided her through the tables, following the Host as he led the way toward their booked table. Instead of leading them to a table in the main restaurant, he led them toward a privacy booth for the elite.

Adrien hesitated. “I didn’t book—”

The Host opened the door, revealing a private dining table. Quiet, cozy, intimate, and with Gabriel Agreste already seated.

Adrien froze. “Shit.”

Marinette swallowed hard. They should’ve expected this. But they hadn’t.

The Host bowed at the waist, still holding the door open. “ _Signore e signora_?”

Etiquette demanded that they enter but there was no way Marinette would force Adrien into that room. Nor would she let him go alone.

Gabriel carefully put his wine glass back on the table and gestured the other two seats at the table. “Join me.”

Adrien’s breath shuddered as he exhaled and he stepped into the room far enough that the Host could close the door. He kept his hand securely around Marinette’s waist, pulling her closer to him.

The Host said something in Italian to her and Marinette thought she caught the words ‘would you’ and not much else. “Um…”

“Would you like something to drink?” Adrien translated smoothly while keeping his eyes fixed firmly on his father. “Something expensive perhaps?”

Would they even be here long enough for it to get to the table? “I don’t suppose they have shots here,” she whispered.

“I wish.”

“Pick something nice.”

Whatever it was he ordered rolled off his tongue and caused Gabriel’s eyes to widen a fraction. The Host bowed at the waist and left the room.

Silence filled the room like a thick fog. Adrien’s hand felt hot on her waist and she could hear his carefully controlled breathing.

“Join me,” Gabriel repeated.

Pressure against her waist to silently ask her to stay instead of moving toward the table.

Clearing his throat, Adrien said, “You’ve haven’t left the Manor since Mom died, and yet I’m not even surprised you’re here. Does it scare you that much that I’ll go through with the resignation?”

Gabriel said. “You have been very rude today and refused to answer my calls. I do not appreciate having to chase you to Milan to deal with this temper tantrum of yours.”

“ _I’ve_ been rude,” Adrien snapped. He released Marinette and jerked a step forward. “You’re the one who’s been manipulating my entire life and I’m the rude one? Do you even hear yourself?”

Gabriel frowned disapprovingly. “Lower your voice, Adrien.”

“This is not a temper tantrum, _Father_ , this is me, saying ‘fuck you and stop interfering with my life’ and let me tell you, it's been a long time in coming.”

“Language, Adrien,” Gabriel scolded. “Such uncouth language is unbecoming of a young man.”

“You won’t let me _be_ a young man,” Adrien snapped back. “You won’t let me make my own mistakes or clean up my own messes. You control everything I do, where I go, who I talk to, and now I find you’re even trying to control who I love. I’ve had enough.”

“Adrien,” Gabriel said with a hint of exasperation. “This is a simple misunderstanding which we can rectify by you joining me at this table and conducting yourself civilly in conversation.”

“A civil conversation,” Adrien responded. “Oh, this will be rich. You can’t explain this away. I know what you’ve done. I heard it, I saw it.”

“Adrien—”

“ _Civilly_ , how much did you pay Lila?”

Gabriel sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “She wasn’t right for you.”

“And you get to choose who’s right for me? Since when?”

Gabriel clasped his hands together and rested them on the table ahead of him. “How does Lila even matter to the current conversation? We need to talk about this resignation. The shareholders will be outraged that—”

“Lila matters because you _interfered_ ,” Adrien snapped, gesturing his father wildly. “Lila matters because you didn’t trust my judgment. Lila matters because you’re _still_ using her against me. You sent her here to seduce me, didn’t you?”

“You’re a young, virile man. I knew even with the contract, I couldn’t expect you to be celibate. Lila was a means to an end.”

“Do you use the same lie on Nathalie?” Adrien snapped. “And that’s just gross. Is that seriously what you think about me? ‘My son has _requirements_!’ You essentially hired me a prostitute! Did you even give her a choice in the matter? Or did you threaten her too?”

Gabriel’s face was devoid of emotion. “If you had stayed with Lila, you would never have met Marinette. I simply showed you Lila’s true colors before she was able to sink her claws into my fortune.”

“ _Your_ fortune? Is that all you care about? What about me? What about _my_ feelings? Were they that inconsequential? You could’ve asked me! You could’ve talked to me about your concerns.”

“You weren’t prepared to listen,” Gabriel admonished. “You still aren’t.”

“Oh, so it's my fault now?” Adrien yelled. “You kicked me out and I’m supposed to be civil about it?”

Marinette tried not to fidget as she listened to Adrien get more and more upset. The fact that the conversation was about Lila hurt her heart, but she knew Adrien needed to get these feelings out. And once they were out, they’d lead to a deeper pain.

“You broke your contract,” Gabriel replied. “One which you _re-signed_ when you came back. Which you are now re-breaking again and you won’t even have the decency to allow me to share a meal with the object of your affection.”

“She’s not an _object_! Don’t you dare—”

Gabriel said, “There will be consequences this time.”

“There were consequences last time,” Adrien snapped. “I survived. I know the contract, Father. I know how to break it. You’re not even sorry this happened, are you? That it's come to this. You’re not sorry for any of it. You didn’t trust me enough to figure out Lila was not the right one for me. And you tried to drive Marinette off. And failed. So don’t sit there and be all high and mighty about it.”

“Use your brain instead of your hormones,” Gabriel returned. “What are you going to do if you leave? There is no one in the industry who would take you on.”

“I won’t stay in the industry,” Adrien said, assertively. “I have a business degree. I’ve already turned down offers so I could stay in Gabriel and help you, Father. Once word gets out I’ve left, I will be rolling in offers.”

Gabriel’s expression turned stormy. “I can guarantee you won’t.”

“So now you’ll threaten me too. That’s so like you. It won’t matter. Just tell me why, Father. Why did you do this?”

“I am your father and it is my job to protect you and prevent you from throwing your life away with the frivolous pursuit of someone who doesn’t care about you.”

“I care about him,” Marinette interjected, offended.

“Present company excluded,” Gabriel amended with an incline of his head. “I was speaking of Lila. You have proven that—”

“I shouldn’t have _had_ to prove anything to you,” Marinette said, shaking her head. “If anyone was going to test me, it should’ve been Adrien.”

“And I wouldn’t have needed to,” Adrien ground out. “That’s where trust comes into play.”

“I don’t think you really understand what you’ve done,” Marinette said, taking a step forward so she could hold Adrien’s hand.

“I have protected him from—”

Marinette raised her voice to firmly drown out Gabriel’s protest, “You have manipulated and hurt your son way beyond his capacity to forgive or even understand. In your shortsightedness to protect your company or your assets, or whatever you told yourself so you could sleep at night, you have ignored the most important thing. What comes after.”

Gabriel frowned at her. “What comes? What do you mean?”

“All those moments,” Marinette explained. “A relationship with him on equal footing. Celebrations and birthdays. Marriage. Children. There is a real possibility he’s not going to want you to be a part of that. And you don’t seem to care.”

Adrien shifted closer to her and his thumb stroked against hers.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Gabriel scoffed.

Marinette held Gabriel’s gaze. “It doesn’t matter if you think you had good intentions. You hurt him. And until you acknowledge that, there is no point continuing this discussion.”

“I have nothing to apologize for,” Gabriel replied. “I did what I thought was right.”

Adrien breathed in through his nose, then let it out slowly. “We’re done.” He released Marinette’s hand and turned his back on his father, offering Marinette his elbow. “Shall we, my lady?”

Looping her hand through, she hugged his arm and smiled. “Of course.”

“Don’t you walk away from me,” Gabriel said, rising from his chair.

“What’s the matter, Father?” Adrien asked, as he led Marinette toward the door. “Getting emotional? Perhaps you should go to your room and _calm down_.”

Marinette shot him a sharp look. It sounded as though Adrien was quoting his father had said to him.

Adrien’s hand was on the handle when Gabriel spoke, “It was your mother’s idea.”

With a sharp breath, Adrien went completely rigid. “Don’t,” he said sounding strained.

“Before she died, she made me promise that I would—”

Releasing Marinette, he spun back toward his father. “ _Don’t you dare_!”

“—ensure that you would find true love. Proper and wholesome. Someone devoted to you, and not your fortune. The dating contract was put in place to ensure you would consider prospective partners carefully before deciding to commit. But we knew we wouldn’t wait until a marriage contract, when you were truly enamored, to determine your partner’s intentions.” Gabriel walked around the table. “I was simply enacting her wishes and—”

Adrien’s voice ripped from his throat and he took several rapid steps toward Gabriel, gesturing wildly and pointing. “You were the one who continued it! You were the one who made me sign _two_ contracts saying I wouldn’t have a relationship. You didn’t even give Marinette a chance! The _moment_ I said I wanted to be with her romantically, you tested her! You were the one did all this. You! Not her!”

“You’re emotional,” Gabriel said in a soothing voice that felt, to Marinette, condescending. He crossing the room toward Adrien and when he reached his son, he placed his hands on both of Adrien’s shoulders. “You’re not ready. You need to control yourself and—”

Adrien used two hands to shove his father away from him, then his fist collided with his father’s cheek. Marinette stifled a shriek, clapping her hands over her mouth as Gabriel staggered backward and thumped into the table behind him hard enough to cause all the china to rattle. Chest heaving, Adrien pointed a finger at his shocked father. “Never come near me again.”

With that Adrien spun on his heel, grabbed Marinette by the hand and marched them from the room.

He strode too fast through the restaurant, spurned by the need to get out of there as soon as he could and Marinette had trouble following. “Adrien!” she protested.

He stopped so fast she ran into his back. “Marinette, I’m _so_ sorry, did I scare you? Did I—”

Hopping, Marinette rested one hand on his shoulder for support as she whipped off her heels. Smiling at him, she said, “Now go.”

A flash of a relieved smile as he understood that _she_ understood his need to escape.

_“Signore?”_ the Host called from the entrance to the wine cellar.

Adrien veered off his hasty dash for the exit to head for the Host, calling something in Italian as he did.

The Host appeared surprised, but inclined his head and gestured to one of the waiters, who hurried back into the cellar.

“What are you doing?” Marinette asked.

“Getting another bottle. He can just deal with it.”

“It's expensive?”

“Very.”

The waiter returned, presenting two bottles of ‘Ornellaia’. Adrien spoke to the Host again, pointing toward the room they’d left Gabriel in. With a smile, the Host nodded in agreement.

Taking the bottles, Adrien hurried out of the restaurant.

“What did you do?”

“Ordered a third bottle, and about ten lobster dinners to send to him.”

Marinette snorted, “Good choice.”

Adrien snickered. “Especially cause he’s allergic to lobster.”

He didn’t speak again until they were safely in his hired car. Both hands on the steering wheel as he drove, he rubbed the red knuckles of his hand. “I’ve never hit anyone before. It hurt.”

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah, nothing seems to be broken.”

“I wasn’t talking about your hand.”

Adrien swallowed. “I know.”

“Adrien—”

He evaded. “Shall we go back to the hotel? We could order room service and then share these lovely expensive wines, courtesy of my father. I’ve heard they’re delicious and—”

She reached over and touched his thigh, resting her hand there.

He sighed and dropped his hand to cover hers. After a long moment, he spoke. “He blamed all this on my mother.”

“That wasn’t fair of him.”

“Especially since she’s not here to defend herself.”

“Is that something she would’ve done?” Marinette asked, hesitant. She didn’t know much about Adrien’s mother at all, but Gabriel had mentioned his wife twice with regard to this contract, so she wondered if it helped a grain of truth.

Adrien let her hand go. He shuffled, moving away from her physically and emotionally. He put an elbow up on the door, then used that hand to rub his forehead. “Maybe.”

“You never talk about her.”

“Hmm.”

She clasped her hands together and rested them on her lap.

Adrien huffed out a sigh. “She died when I was thirteen. I know she loved me dearly. She was kind and sweet and caring. So great at putting on plays or telling stories. She used to do all the voices and we’d laugh for hours and hours.”

“She sounds amazing.”

He hummed. “Except that I knew her as a mother. Not as an adult. From what the older staff whisper… she was a dragon. Fiercely protective over the things she loved, like me and Father, and everyone else, she’d burn to the ground. She was best friends with Audrey, Chloe’s mom, if you remember what she’s like.”

“Oh. Yes. She was… a force to be reckoned with.”

“If you don’t get fired, yeah. So that’s probably saying something.”

“So… it's possible?”

“It's… likely. I guess. I don’t want to think about it. Cause even if it was her idea, he enacted it and kept it in place.”

Marinette nodded. Not sure what to say to help, she looked out the window and into the night.

“Children?” Adrien asked.

Marinette turned her head back. “Huh?”

“You said ‘children’. And ‘marriage’.”

Marinette’s mouth went dry and her eyes widened. “It was an example.”

“Is it something you think about? As part of the ‘potential’ in us? Marriage and babies and things like that?”

Marinette nibbled on her bottom lip. “Of course I thought about it,” she answered. “But… ahh… Adrien, right now you’re probably looking at ways to hurt your father. I don’t think you should be—”

“I wasn’t,” he muttered in a voice that suggested he totally was.

“It's a very big step,” Marinette said. “We’ve only just started and I think marriage should be for the right reasons, not to stick one to your father. As much as he deserves it, I think you would regret it and I wouldn’t want that hanging over us.”

Adrien huffed out an angry sort of breath, but Marinette didn’t think it was at her.

“Alya would totally murder me in my sleep if we eloped before she could get married,” Marinette said, trying to lighten his mood.

“Hmm.”

“We can totally practice the making babies part.”

He shuffled in his seat, putting both hands back on the steering wheel.

“It’s a delicate art. Requires a lot of practice. Hands on experience.”

He rubbed the knuckles of his hand again and Marinette pressed her lips together. Flirting and being playful wasn’t going to help him out of this one.

They arrived back at the hotel without speaking again, but she was glad when he offered her his hand to hold during the walk back inside.

The foyer was practically deserted, except for a few staff members and one person who seemed to be checking in. Adrien didn’t deviate from the path to the elevators. Nor did he really look at her, even as he held her hand.

This wasn’t what she signed on for and she didn't know how to help him.

Once back in his room, Adrien left both bottles of wine on the bench, kicked off his shoes, threw his jacket on the back of a chair and muttered, “I’m going to take a shower.”

Marinette watched him sadly, and her heart felt heavy when the door clicked shut. She sat on the bed and slipped off her shoes, raising her eyes to the bathroom wall as she heard the shower start up immediately. He wouldn’t have had time to even undress so...

He was using the noise of the water to hide his distress.

She wasn’t going to let him go through this alone, so she stripped off as quickly as she could.

Adrien, when Marinette entered the bathroom through the unlocked door, was beneath the too-hot water, head hanging. Hunched at the waist, his arms extended so his hands could brace on the side of the shower.

With his head under the water, he didn’t hear Marinette until she slipped into the shower behind him. Glancing back at her under his arm, he tilted away from her. “Marinette, I—”

Wrapping her hands around his torso, she pressed herself against his back. “I’m not going anywhere.”

Adrien felt tense. “I don’t want to talk.”

“So don’t,” she responded, stroking his bare chest with her hands. Marinette turned her head, resting her cheek on his back so she didn’t drown under the spray of the water. “I’m still here.”

“I don’t… I don’t think you should see me like this. My…fath... he said… never show weakness. Never let anyone see you…” He made a strangled noise and hunched his shoulders further.

“Maman always said take the good with the bad,” she murmured. “No one can be strong all the time, and if you can’t trust your partner to help when you’re weak, who can you trust?”

He made another odd noise, halfway between a sob and whimper.

She dropped a kiss on his back. “Do you want me to go?”

He managed to shake his head before the dam broke. Body shuddering, Adrien lurched forward and pressed the top of his head against the tiles. She moved with him, holding on tight and stroking her hands along his torso to soothe him.

She didn’t speak, beyond a few croons and while he didn’t turn around to cuddle her and take what comfort he could, he let himself have that release of emotion he so desperately needed. Gave it all to the water and let it be washed away.

He slowly relaxed under her soothing hands. Shifting his weight, he braced on one hand and touched the other to cover hers. “I’m sorry,” he croaked. “I’m not dealing with this well.”

“Don’t be,” Marinette said and pressed her lips to his back. “I don’t expect you to know how to deal with it. I’m just here.”

He curled against her leaning into her embrace. “Thanks.”

They stayed there for a time, leaning on each other, while Marinette stroked her hands up and down his chest. Water trickled down his back and pooled in the places where their bodies aligned.

Eventually, he sighed, lifting his face to the water to wash it. “We should get out before we wrinkle.”

“We could,” she replied. “Oooooor...”

“Or?” He sounded intrigued, which was a good sign.

She placed a kiss against his back to see how receptive he was, and in response, he nudged himself backward. So she placed another one right beside the first, then kept going. A line of soft presses that turned into open-mouthed kisses along his back until he became restless beneath her mouth, but she wasn’t going to let him turn around just yet. Sliding her hands down, she went for the growing hardness she’d ignored until now.

Adrien moaned and leaned into her and she watched with delight as his hands, previously flat against the wall, curled. He rocked, very gently, in time with the motion of her hands.

She kept her kisses light and fluttery against his back and shoulders and wherever she could reach, then included an occasional teeth graze. He dropped one hand from the wall to reach back and grip her hip. His fingers kneaded her at a rhythm that closely matched the one she used on him, albeit slightly faster, but Marinette refused to be coaxed.

Adrien lifted out of his hunch and twisted in her arms. Looping his hands around her torso, he tugged her until they were flush together and kissed her. Deep and long, he took her breath away and she found herself backed up into a wall, her shoulders against the cool tiles, while he snaked a hand between her legs.

With a sigh of delight, she let her head drop back against the tiles and gave him access to her neck, one he took happily and then kissed his way farther down to truly worship her.

“Bed?” she whimpered when she could no longer stand it, anxious and ready to be filled by more than his fingers or his tongue.

“Bed,” Adrien agreed and reached for the shower taps.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please note: As explained last chapter, this story is now DISCONTINUED for the time being.


End file.
